The new requirement hits travelers before they board: without a digital approval in the system, ground staff in cities such as Warsaw or Krakow will not issue a boarding pass or accept checked baggage.
London has effectively tasked carriers operating in Poland with enforcing ETA verification, it said. If a passenger is not listed in the digital database, a trip to visit family or for tourism can end at check-in, while still on Polish soil.
Obtaining an ETA is not complicated, Polish Radio quoted London-based consul Renata Kowalska as saying.
“You have to use the application available on the British government websites or the website. It’s not worth using intermediaries to arrange this permit, ETA without intermediaries costs less. ETA is a permit that is valid for two years, on its basis you can stay in the United Kingdom for six months,” she said.
The changes also affect Poles with dual citizenship. When returning from Poland to the United Kingdom, they cannot use only a Polish passport at the British border and need a British passport.
(jh)
Source: Polish Radio