Starting January 8, 2024, all travelers from visa-exempt countries, including the United States, Canada, and many others, will need to apply for an Electronic Travel Authorization (ETA) before their trip.
The UK ETA is a digital authorization linked to your passport. It costs £10 (about $13) and is valid for two years. The ETA allows you to make multiple trips to the UK during that period.
If you are from a visa-exempt country (such as the U.S. or Canada), you’ll need an ETA for short-term visits (under six months). This includes travelers connecting through UK airports, even if you’re continuing to another destination.
You can apply online or via the ETA app. You will need your passport, a photo, and payment details (credit/debit card, Apple Pay, or Google Pay). The application process is straightforward and typically takes only a few minutes. Click here to apply.
Brazil has officially launched the platform through which citizens of the United States, Canada and Australia can obtain their electronic visa (eVisa) to enter the country. Travelers from these countries will need the visa to enter Brazil by air starting January 10, 2024.
The electronic visa will allow multiple entries and will have the same validity period as conventional visas. For Americans, this means a validity of 10 years (five years each for Canadians and Australians).
Travelers will have to input their personal information and confirmation of a flight reservation and pay a fee of $80 to secure the visa—all of which is done online. Once approved, a PDF file containing your eVisa will be emailed to you. Download and print this eVisa for presentation during boarding and upon landing in Brazil.
Member nations of the European Union will begin requiring all non-EU nationals to have a short stay visa to enter any of the European Union countries. The new system is expected to be up and running in early 2025. U.S. citizens traveling to the European Union will be required to have a biometric passport in order to use the new Entry/Exit System throughout Europe.
The FBI is reminding travelers to beware of free, public charging stations that offer a seemingly convenient solution to a dead phone battery or device.
“Avoid using free charging stations in airports, hotels or shopping centers. Bad actors have figured out ways to use public USB ports to introduce malware and monitoring software onto devices,” the FBI Denver office shared on social media.
For travelers looking to charge up when on the go, the FBI recommends that individuals bring their own charger with a USB cable, and plug it directly into an electrical outlet instead of using a charging station.
This trend of hacking has been called “Juice Jacking” by the Federal Communications Commission. The FCC has additional recommendations for travelers to purchase charging only cables that cannot transfer data, and to be aware of prompts saying “share data” or “charge only” when using a USB port.
“Malware installed through a corrupted USB port can lock a device or export personal data and passwords directly to the perpetrator,” the FCC warns in their alert.
In addition to the “Juice Jacking” trend, the FBI has published previous alerts for digital safety when traveling. The FBI discourages the use of hotel wi-fi for work related projects, and has published tips for travelers who have to use open internet networks. The guidance includes using a phone’s wireless hotspot instead of hotel Wi-Fi, and confirming all devices are up to date with the latest software & firmware.
For students traveling abroad, the FBI has published a “Student Travel Safety Brochure” which includes helpful safety tips such as changing sensitive passwords after traveling, and staying vigilant for online phishing attempts that aim to steal data.
Planning a trip to Mexico? Travelers should be aware that as of January 15, 2023, Mexico’s anti-smoking law went into effect country-wide. The law, endorsed by the World Health Organization, mad it illegal to smoke everywhere with the exception of a private residence. Smoking is banned in all public areas including parks, beaches, squares, hotels, restaurants, resorts, schools, shopping centers, stores, entertainment venues, public streets, sightseeing venues and any place that is not a private residence. Hotel and resort rooms are considered public places according to this law.
Other countries such as Spain, Costa Rica, and Hungary have implemented new anti-smoking laws but are not as strict as the new law in Mexico.