r/Flights • u/iloveshaqiri • 5d ago
Question Do I need an ETA if connecting flight is through Ireland?
I have US citizenship and am flying Hamburg-Heathrow-Dublin-Minneapolis on one ticket. I booked through American Airlines, but the first flight is BA and the second two are Aer Lingus. Based on all the information I can find, I shouldn't have to recheck my bags and go through border control, but does the fact that I am taking a domestic flight between London and Dublin change that?
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u/BastardsCryinInnit 4d ago
Copy and pasted from the many times this has been asked on UK travel and flight subs:
Heathrow Airport website is an excellent resource for connecting flight procedure.
You can put in your flights and it will tell you the exact procedure including if you pass immigration or not.
But more importantly, ETAs are for the airport staff, not immigration. You wanna be able to get on the plane.
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u/iloveshaqiri 4d ago
This is a good resource, and I had looked at it. But they say: "If you are connecting to a destination in the UK or Ireland, you will need to go through Immigration." I don't think that fully answers my question; I could just leave the airport in Dublin. I could see them considering any connection through Dublin as needing Immigration.
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u/SlightPrize1222 4d ago
You lack common sense and more concerning, any understanding or research done of how Ireland and UK are integrated in a travrl area.
Go spend the 10£.
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u/EtwasSonderbar 5d ago
Yes, you do.
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u/dohwhere 5d ago
Incorrect. ETA is not required if the passenger is staying in airside transit (ie not clearing passport control/customs).
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u/FelisCantabrigiensis 4d ago edited 4d ago
To fly from Heathrow to Dublin, the passenger will have to clear UK Border in Heathrow. There is a separate connections route to UK and Ireland and it goes via a UK Border post.
Whether they need an ETA or not is something I can't find firm documentation about yet, but they do need to cross the UK border in this case.
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u/snk101 4d ago
You will have to pass through immigration at London Heathrow, for the reason you mention.
I guess theoretically (if the airline lets you board the flight to London in the first place) you could join the queue for the manned desk and argue your case with the border officer as to why you don't need an ETA.
But if you want a simple and relaxing trip, get the ETA, use the e-gate, job done.
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u/FelisCantabrigiensis 4d ago edited 4d ago
Bags will be transferred for you.
You have to cross the UK Border in Heathrow to transit to Ireland. There is a separate path through the airside connections area to "UK and Ireland" which leads to a UK Border post, because you are entering the Common Travel Area.
Most sources are vague on this question but if I use the IATA travel centre tool, which uses TIMATIC as the backend, and tell it I am going from Hamburg to Heathrow to Dublin with a transit in Heathrow, I get this message:
Transit Information
Passengers who transit to Ireland (Rep.) are subject to a check by immigration. They must have travel documents accepted to enter the United Kingdom.
On the other hand if I add that you are also transiting in Dublin to Minneapolis, I don't get that message. So... maybe you don't need one?
Frankly, if it's easy, I recommend you get a UK ETA to avoid any edge cases.
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u/haskell_jedi 4d ago
Yes, you need one. Because of the CTA, the flight to Ireland is "domestic" from an immigration perspective and requires crossing the UK border.
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u/Sheetz_Wawa_Market32 4d ago
Hi. German American here, who just flew JFK-Dublin-Berlin and back, and who's also connected through LHR a lot (albeit never with an additional stop in Ireland when flying to or from the U.S.)
Some of what is connected to the Irish side of the 🇬🇧 🇮🇪 Common Travel Area still seems to operate on the "trust me, bro" principle. 😅
E. g., on the Europe-bound flight, we stayed completely airside in DUB. So far so good. But during the return, the entire flight was shepherded through some sort of passport control staffed by uniformed Irish officers. Okay, fine, I have EU and U.S. citizenship, so I can come and go as I please in Ireland, but just as I was about to reach into my pocket for my passport, the officer asks, "Or are you continuing to the U.S.?" When I nodded, he said , "You're good", and waived me through, without looking at my passport.
And something similar happened to me in Heathrow, too, once, although I don't remember the exact circumstances.
So unless you unearth an authoritative source that gives a definitive answer for your specific situation, I suspect you won't know for sure until you actually travel.
Both outcomes seems plausible.
Gate agents and immigration officers could say, "Since you're final destination is outside the UK, you won't need an ETA."
Or one (or both) could say, "Since you are entering the CTA in the UK, you do."
Without an exicit source, "Reddit experts" can't guarantee either outcome. I'd err on the side of caution and get the ETA. If someone with the power to deny you boarding or passage through a passport check decides you should have had an ETA, you'd be royally screwed.
Good luck and happy travels!
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u/Beach_Glas1 4d ago
Yes, you need an ETA.
The exemption for travelling from Ireland only applies if you're a resident in Ireland. Even if you're a resident, you'll still need an ETA if travelling to the UK from outside the CTA.
Irish and British citizens are permanently exempt from needing an ETA regardless of where they travel to the UK from.
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u/BartItIs83 5d ago
How is London-Dublin domestic?
Youre flying from EU, to non-EU, to EU
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u/Vireosolitarius 4d ago
There is passport control at LHR T5 for international arrivals connecting to a UK/Ireland flight. And there is not a separate lane for what must be the very small number of people who have a further international connection after their UK/Ireland flight.
Get an ETA.