Electronic passport gates for US citizens at Heathrow
Can US citizens use the electronic passport gates at Heathrow airport without having to enroll beforehand in any special programs?
Best Answer
You will be able to from Summer 2019 says this article on the UK government's website, I'm pretty sure it used to say April 2019 (not 100%) though.
But at the moment you cannot use these gates, you have to see an immigration officer in the All other passports queue, unless you are a registered traveller.
From summer 2019, eligible travellers from Australia, Canada, Japan, New Zealand and the United States will be able to use the ePassport gates at 14 ports, both in the UK and at Eurostar terminals at Brussels and Paris.
I will update the answer when this comes into force.
Update May 2019
As of 20th May 2019, citizens of Australia, Canada, Japan, New Zealand, Singapore, South Korea and the United States can now use ePassport gates, including at Heathrow.
From today (Monday 20 May), visitors from Australia, Canada, Japan, New Zealand, Singapore, South Korea and the United States will be able to use ePassport gates at ports across the UK and juxtaposed controls in a move designed to speed up border controls for low-risk countries.
Pictures about "Electronic passport gates for US citizens at Heathrow"
Can Americans use eGates at Heathrow?
You can use eGates if you fit the following criteria: You must be a citizen of Great Britain & Northern Ireland, the European Union, or European Economic Area (including Norway, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Switzerland), Australia, Canada, Japan, New Zealand, Singapore, South Korea, or the United States of America.Who can use eGates Heathrow?
Use the eGates for quicker entry are either: a British citizen. a national of an EU country, Australia, Canada, Iceland, Japan, Liechtenstein, New Zealand, Norway, Singapore, South Korea, Switzerland or the USA. a member of the Registered Traveller Service.Can UK passport holders use eGates?
While UK passport holders can no longer use the EU e-gates, three Portuguese airports have installed new sets of e-gates that UK passport holders can now use. The gates have been in operation since April 2022.How to scan passport at e gate?
As you approach the e-Passport gate you should remove your passport from any cover and open it to the picture page, place it face down on the scanner so it can scan the picture and read the key information. This could take a few seconds.How to use eGates
Sources: Stack Exchange - This article follows the attribution requirements of Stack Exchange and is licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0.
Images: Karolina Grabowska, Edmond Dantès, Gustavo Fring, Ethan Wilkinson