𝐏𝐫𝐨𝐩𝐨𝐬𝐞𝐝 𝐈𝐧𝐜𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐬𝐞𝐬 𝐭𝐨 𝐔𝐊 𝐇𝐨𝐦𝐞 𝐎𝐟𝐟𝐢𝐜𝐞 𝐅𝐞𝐞𝐬: 𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐘𝐨𝐮 𝐍𝐞𝐞𝐝 𝐭𝐨 𝐊𝐧𝐨𝐰.

The UK government has announced proposed increases to several Home Office fees, affecting electronic travel authorisations (ETA), nationality applications, and sponsorship fees. While the draft regulations have been introduced, they must be debated and approved by both Houses before coming into effect.

At 𝐁𝐫𝐢𝐭𝐨𝐧 𝐒𝐨𝐥𝐢𝐜𝐢𝐭𝐨𝐫𝐬, 𝐥𝐞𝐝 𝐛𝐲 𝐏𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐜𝐢𝐩𝐚𝐥 𝐒𝐨𝐥𝐢𝐜𝐢𝐭𝐨𝐫 𝐑𝐢𝐳𝐰𝐚𝐧 𝐒𝐮𝐥𝐞𝐡𝐫𝐢𝐚, we are committed to keeping our clients informed about key immigration changes. Below is a summary of the proposed adjustments and what they could mean for individuals and businesses.

𝐓𝐞𝐦𝐩𝐨𝐫𝐚𝐫𝐲 𝐄𝐱𝐞𝐦𝐩𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐀𝐢𝐫 𝐓𝐫𝐚𝐧𝐬𝐢𝐭 𝐏𝐚𝐬𝐬𝐞𝐧𝐠𝐞𝐫𝐬
As part of the recent announcements, the government has temporarily exempted airside transit passengers from the requirement to obtain an 𝐄𝐥𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐫𝐨𝐧𝐢𝐜 𝐓𝐫𝐚𝐯𝐞𝐥 𝐀𝐮𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐫𝐢𝐬𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 (𝐄𝐓𝐀)..
This exemption applies to passengers who remain airside and do not pass through UK border control. It will primarily impact Heathrow and Manchester airports, the only UK airports with transit facilities. The exemption will be kept under review.

𝐏𝐫𝐨𝐩𝐨𝐬𝐞𝐝 𝐈𝐧𝐜𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐬𝐞𝐬 𝐢𝐧 𝐇𝐨𝐦𝐞 𝐎𝐟𝐟𝐢𝐜𝐞 𝐅𝐞𝐞𝐬
1. 𝐄𝐥𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐫𝐨𝐧𝐢𝐜 𝐓𝐫𝐚𝐯𝐞𝐥 𝐀𝐮𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐫𝐢𝐬𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 (𝐄𝐓𝐀)
Current fee: £10
Proposed fee: £16
Additionally, provisions have been made for Guernsey, Jersey, and the Isle of Man to charge the same ETA fee once their schemes are introduced.

2. 𝐍𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐥𝐢𝐭𝐲 𝐀𝐩𝐩𝐥𝐢𝐜𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐅𝐞𝐞𝐬
Several fees related to British citizenship and nationality applications are set to rise:

𝐍𝐚𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐚𝐥𝐢𝐬𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐚𝐬 𝐚 𝐁𝐫𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐬𝐡 𝐂𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐳𝐞𝐧:
Current fee: £1,500
Proposed fee: £1,605
Naturalisation as a British Overseas Territories Citizen:
Current fee: £1,000
Proposed fee: £1,070
Reconsideration of Naturalisation or Registration Applications:
Current fee: £450
Proposed fee: £482
Registration of Renunciation of British Citizenship:
Current fee: £450
Proposed fee: £482
Amendment of a Certificate of Registration or Naturalisation:
Current fee: £400
Proposed fee: £428
Document Confirming Right of Abode in the UK:
Current fee: £550
Proposed fee: £589
Letter Confirming Nationality or Non-British Citizenship Status:
Current fee: £429
Proposed fee: £459
Duplicate Citizenship Certificate:
Current fee: £400
Proposed fee: £428
3. Sponsorship Fees (For Employers & Skilled Workers)
Significant changes have been proposed for Certificate of Sponsorship (CoS) fees:

𝐒𝐭𝐚𝐧𝐝𝐚𝐫𝐝 𝐂𝐞𝐫𝐭𝐢𝐟𝐢𝐜𝐚𝐭𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐒𝐩𝐨𝐧𝐬𝐨𝐫𝐬𝐡𝐢𝐩:
Current fee: £239
Proposed fee: £525
Lower-tier Certificate of Sponsorship:
Current fee: £25
Proposed fee: £55
Sponsorship Approval (New ‘Sponsor a Worker’ Process):
Current fee: £300
Proposed fee: £525
The ‘Sponsor a Worker’ process is currently undergoing a phased rollout and will eventually replace the existing CoS system.

𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭’𝐬 𝐍𝐞𝐱𝐭?
The proposed fee increases have been introduced under the Immigration and Nationality (Fees) (Amendment) Order 2025 and will officially take effect once parliamentary approval is granted.

𝘼𝙩 𝘽𝙧𝙞𝙩𝙤𝙣 𝙎𝙤𝙡𝙞𝙘𝙞𝙩𝙤𝙧𝙨, 𝙬𝙚 𝙬𝙞𝙡𝙡 𝙘𝙤𝙣𝙩𝙞𝙣𝙪𝙚 𝙩𝙤 𝙢𝙤𝙣𝙞𝙩𝙤𝙧 𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙨𝙚 𝙘𝙝𝙖𝙣𝙜𝙚𝙨 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙪𝙥𝙙𝙖𝙩𝙚 𝙤𝙪𝙧 𝙘𝙡𝙞𝙚𝙣𝙩𝙨 𝙖𝙨 𝙨𝙤𝙤𝙣 𝙖𝙨 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙣𝙚𝙬 𝙛𝙚𝙚𝙨 𝙘𝙤𝙢𝙚 𝙞𝙣𝙩𝙤 𝙚𝙛𝙛𝙚𝙘𝙩.

𝐍𝐞𝐞𝐝 𝐋𝐞𝐠𝐚𝐥 𝐀𝐬𝐬𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐞?
If you require immigration advice regarding nationality applications, sponsor licences, or work visas, our expert team is here to help.