UK eVisa: What It Is, How to Access It and What to Do If It Is Wrong

An eVisa is a digital record of your identity and immigration status, for example the type of visa you have or whether you have indefinite leave to remain. It also records the conditions of your status, such as whether you are allowed to work or study in the UK. You get one when you successfully apply for a visa or another type of permission to be in the UK.

eVisas have replaced physical immigration documents. If you have a visa vignette, which is a sticker in your passport, it stays valid until it expires. If you have a biometric residence card, you may still be able to use it in some situations.

You can use the GOV.UK service to access an eVisa if you have any visa for the UK, or settlement in the UK, which is also called indefinite leave to remain. It also gives access to a digital record of exemption, if you are exempt from immigration control, for example as a diplomat, and to a digital certificate of entitlement, if you have the right of abode.

If your partner and children are joining you in the UK as dependants, each of them needs their own UKVI account to access their own eVisa. More guides on status and work are in our immigration section.

You need a UK Visas and Immigration (UKVI) account to access your eVisa. You do not have to pay to set one up or to access your eVisa. You may already have an account if you used the ‘UK Immigration: ID Check’ app, created an account when you applied for a visa, replaced a physical document such as a biometric residence permit with an eVisa, or applied to the EU Settlement Scheme. If you already have one, do not create another.

To create an account you need a phone number and an email address that you can use each time you sign in. After you create it you are asked to confirm your identity and link the account to your eVisa. You cannot access your eVisa until it is linked. Our UKVI account guide goes through what you need, how to recover an account and how to update it.

You need a smartphone to install the app that confirms your identity. If you do not have a valid passport or an expired biometric residence card, or you cannot use a smartphone or the app, you can confirm your identity another way.

You can choose whether to get an eVisa if you have a physical immigration document with no expiry date that proves your settlement, such as an indefinite leave to remain stamp or sticker. Getting an eVisa will not change your immigration status, and you can still use your physical document.

• ✓Yes: The application is free. You need a phone number and email address you can use each time you sign in, and the passport or travel document you used when you last entered the UK
• ✓Yes: You also need the physical document that proves your settlement, if you have one
• ✓Yes: You have your fingerprints and photo taken at a UK Visa and Citizenship Application Services service point, and you upload supporting documents or pay to have them scanned at the appointment
• ✓Yes: It can take up to 6 months to process. You can carry on using your physical document in the meantime

Sign in to your UKVI account to view your eVisa. You need the details you use to sign in, which could be your passport, national identity card, biometric residence card (valid or expired), an expired biometric residence permit or your UKVI customer number. You also need access to the mobile phone number or email address you use to sign in.

From your eVisa you can get a share code to prove your immigration status to people such as employers or landlords, or when you travel. They enter the code with your date of birth, and you do not need to show them your eVisa. They see some of your personal details, and you are told what they are when you get the code.

A share code lasts 90 days. You can use it as many times as you need before it expires, and get a new one whenever you need one. The code is made for a purpose, so a work code and a rent code are different. Our guide to proving your immigration status explains which to use, and the right to work share code guide covers jobs.

Keep your personal details and passport or travel document information up to date so the details are correct when you view your eVisa and get a share code, you can travel with your current passport or travel document, and UKVI can contact you. If your account is out of date you might be delayed when you travel or while you wait for a visa decision.

Update your UKVI account if you change your passport or travel document, name, mobile phone number, email address, home address or postal address. You can also correct your date of birth, add or change a nationality, add another passport and change your photo, if your appearance has changed and you cannot be recognised from your current photo. A new photo has to meet the rules for digital photos or it is rejected. You cannot change your name or your passport or travel document while you are waiting for a visa application decision.

First check you finished setting up your UKVI account and linked it to your eVisa. If you did, report an error with your eVisa if:

• ✓Yes: your eVisa details are wrong, for example it shows the wrong date of birth or immigration status
• ✓Yes: you can view your eVisa but you cannot use it to get a share code
• ✓Yes: you cannot view your eVisa because of a technical error when you are signed in
• ✓Yes: the Home Office set up your UKVI account and you have never been able to sign in to it

You will need an email or UK postal address that UKVI can use to contact you, and your name, date of birth and nationality as they appear on your eVisa. You will also be asked for one of: your passport number, your expired biometric residence permit number, your global web form number or unique application number from your visa application, or your UKVI customer number.

You can ask someone else to report the error for you, such as a legal representative, an employer, a friend or colleague, or a member of staff at a university or charity. UKVI aims to fix most issues within 5 working days. If the issue is complex it can take up to 15 working days, and you get an email if it is likely to take longer or if you need to give more information.

You must check your UKVI account and eVisa are correct before you travel to or from the UK. Your carrier may not let you travel if your details are wrong, and you may be delayed at the UK border. Your account needs your correct personal details and your current passport or travel document, and your details must exactly match the passenger information you give your carrier, such as your airline.

You must travel with a valid passport or travel document that you have added to your UKVI account. Your eVisa is checked when you leave and enter the UK, either by a border control officer or when you use the eGates, and when you check in with your carrier to return. If you are asked for more proof of your status, you can get a share code or use a physical immigration document if you have one. A share code for travel is valid for 90 days, so you can get it before you travel.

If you have more than one passport, add the one you will travel with. If one of your nationalities is British or Irish you do not need an eVisa and must travel with your British or Irish passport, or a passport with a certificate of entitlement. If your passport or personal details change while you are outside the UK, update your UKVI account or ask UKVI to update it for you. If your carrier cannot check your eVisa, they can ask the UK Border Force carrier support hub for help.

Biometric residence permits were used to prove immigration status, and you may have one if you were granted permission to live or work in the UK on or before 31 October 2024. All of them have now expired and been replaced by eVisas. You might be able to use an expired card for 24 months after the expiry date printed on it, or until 31 December 2026, whichever comes first, and only to:

• ✓Yes: sign in to view your eVisa and get a share code
• ✓Yes: create a UKVI account to get access to your eVisa
• ✓Yes: apply to extend your permission to stay in the UK

You use your eVisa to prove your immigration status for any other reason. If there is a problem with your expired card you cannot use it, and you must destroy it by cutting through your personal details, the royal coat of arms and the gold chip. Check you can get access to an eVisa and that its details are correct.

The eVisa service gives access to an eVisa for any visa for the UK, which GOV.UK lists as England, Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland. The steps are the same wherever in the UK you live.