How to prepare your eVisa for travel and handle airline checks

Katerina Galkina · EN · 07/10/2026

Compare three sets of information

Before travelling, compare your valid passport, UKVI account/eVisa and the passenger information supplied to your carrier. The passport number, name and other details must match the document being used. UKVI warns ↗ that incorrect details can result in denied travel or delays at the border.

Also check the immigration status itself and the permission's expiry. An old visa grant email does not establish that the current eVisa is displayed correctly. Check early enough to update a passport or correct an error. Check each family member's own record.

Prepare evidence for the carrier

You must travel with a valid passport or travel document added to your UKVI account. If you hold multiple nationalities, add the document being used for this journey. The official instructions ↗ allow you to obtain a travel share code in advance; it lasts 90 days and can be used repeatedly during that period.

Save the code and know how to open the official service. It supports the status check but does not replace a valid passport. If you have a physical document proving valid immigration status, the guidance says you may carry it as additional evidence. Do not assume an expired card is a universal boarding document.

If the airline cannot see your status

Calmly ask the agent to check the passport number entered and the other details. Provide a travel share code if requested and explain that your status is held in an eVisa. If verification still fails, GOV.UK tells the carrier to contact the UK Border Force carrier support hub ↗. This is a carrier channel, so request escalation to an authorised check-in staff member.

For an incorrect record, use Report an error ↗; if you cannot access the account, use the recovery process linked from the guidance. Record the time, error details and support reference. Submitting a support request does not guarantee correction before the next flight.

Consider passport changes and other countries

If you replace your passport overseas, follow UKVI's procedure for changed information before returning. Whether you can update it yourself depends on the passport type and the changes involved. Do not buy an ETA to “fix” an eVisa: these are different arrangements, and an ETA does not correct a resident's status.

A UK eVisa does not determine entry or transit rights in another country. Check the destination and every connection separately for your nationality. British and Irish dual citizens have separate travel-document instructions; after acquiring such citizenship, check the current rules rather than automatically continuing to use the resident eVisa procedure.