Beware delays at Heathrow Term 3 Immigration

[ChrisDPom]

Just landed at LHR Terminal 3 on QF1 this morning and the immigration hall is chaotic due to all electronic gates being closed and the area sealed off behind walls for an upgrade.

Took almost 2 hours to get through (and I was in the UK & EEC passport line which was the fastest).

anyone with a tight connecting flight until this is completed (no dates given), beware of this issue.

Cheers

Chris

 

[porterble]

Thanks for the heads up. Will look to reschedule my first meeting.

Were there any indications on how long it would be?

 

[ChrisDPom]

AsI mentioned in my post, no dates given.

Nothing on on the walls they have put up (except a promo saying an upgrade is occurring and that Heathrow staff said they don't know (but that seemed to be there answer to any question).

Staff just didn't seem to care and were asked repeatedly By a number of us if it would be possible to allow people with young children to be allowed through quicker.

This is is the official LHR website page on the electronic gates:
Immigration and passports | UK border control | Heathrow

Absolutely nothing there.

 

[porterble]

Yeah, sounds like huge amounts of fun. Thanks for the heads up anyway, first meeting shifted later in the day.

 

[Sdtravel]

Thanks for the heads up.
I have an exactly 2h connection in Heathrow in late July. I hope it's better by then.
But since I am transiting onward to another international location i assume that it won't affect me so much since i won't be going through immigration?? You're more referring to tight domestic UK connections right?

 

[ChrisDPom]

If you are flying on at the same terminal and your bags are checked through, you should be OK.

If if you say have to go through to BA at terminal 5 then you have to pass through immigration, take the train to 5, check in and go back through immigration & security.

Even with normal, that would be a tight schedule.

Suggest you you check and see if anyone can confirm for you.

Chris

 

[TonyHancock]

If you are flying on at the same terminal and your bags are checked through, you should be OK.

If if you say have to go through to BA at terminal 5 then you have to pass through immigration, take the train to 5, check in and go back through immigration & security.

Even with normal, that would be a tight schedule.

Suggest you you check and see if anyone can confirm for you.

Chris

Not sure I understand? If you are checked through to another destination outside of the UK and flying BA wouldn't you take the airside connection bus to T5 and avoid UK immigration or am I missing something?

The situation was reversed for me with a BA flight into T5 from DUB and an onwards flight to CMB with UL from T3 - no need to clear immigration.

 

[Sdtravel]

Not sure I understand? If you are checked through to another destination outside of the UK and flying BA wouldn't you take the airside connection bus to T5 and avoid UK immigration or am I missing something?

The situation was reversed for me with a BA flight into T5 from DUB and an onwards flight to CMB with UL from T3 - no need to clear immigration.

That is my understanding. I go to flight connections and stay airside over to t5 with everything checked through on the same pnr.
I might have to go through a security screening but no immigration.

 

[Austman]

I landed at T3 on 26th May 20:00. There was no problem at the non UK/EU section I used. It took just minutes for me. I didn't see any electronic gates in this section.

 

[ChrisDPom]

Electronic gates are on the UK & EEC side only (registered regular travellers on Oz passports can use them as well - see the linked page further up the thread).

i suspect your 20.00 landing time is the answer as to why you were so quick Austman. How many flights were disgorging their hordes at that time?

The early morning crush when QF1 arrives of international flights for T3 coming in on long hauls means there is always a spike in numbers.

Add to that the number of immigration staff who are on shift at 06.30am when I arrived (7 in total for both queues), really did not help.

Hopefully they learn from this and allocate more staff to the early swing when LHR opens and all the long hauls arrive as clearly the staff numbers checking passports isn't enough with the epassport gates offline.


Onto the transfer bus option. It only works if you can check your baggage through.

If if not it is immigration queue, baggage collection, customs and off you go again to check in at whichever is the right terminal.

Otherwise in transit bus is OK (why I said "check your options and ask").

if booked on a totally seperate booking, this sometimes is not allowed.

Good of luck to all - and check, don't assume on transit

Chris

 

[TheRealTMA]

AsI mentioned in my post, no dates given.

Nothing on on the walls they have put up (except a promo saying an upgrade is occurring and that Heathrow staff said they don't know (but that seemed to be there answer to any question).

Staff just didn't seem to care and were asked repeatedly By a number of us if it would be possible to allow people with young children to be allowed through quicker.

This is is the official LHR website page on the electronic gates:
Immigration and passports | UK border control | Heathrow

Absolutely nothing there.

SEVENTY POUNDS to register for electronic passport eligibility PER YEAR! Sheesh! The English are getting very greedy with their airport and passport charges. We have partriality and have had renewals of the visa stamp for five passports easily but a few years ago they changed to wanting all the original documents ( some now 95 years old) and something like £450 to renew the stamp for my new Australian passport. Didn't take up the offer.

 

[ChrisDPom]

£450 ???? !!!!

i thought the Aussie visa costs were high.

I was lucky with my kids and coughed up for their British passports based on my being born UK and married to their Australian mother (crazy UK rules did not allow it other way round where UK parent was their mother and married to an Australian father but I believe that may change).

passports have paid for themselves already on avoiding visa fees in UK & Europe (and Bali until last month when Oz got the nod).

Chris

 

[TheRealTMA]

£450 ???? !!!!

i thought the Aussie visa costs were high.

It's outrageous. My patriality is through the discrimatory policy for females pre '65 (as I remember). Mother arrived in Australia in '48 so I only qualify for patriality not British passport (which actually I don't want, being Australian). They used to just transfer the stamped visa between passports but then they became greedy. After all, it's not actually a visa but a birth right, and I have four previous passports with the certificate. I wonder if the Queen's relatives have the same fees.

Interesting question if the previous four patriality certificate stamps qualify if presented along with a new current Australian passport.

But, a little title more on topic, £70 per year to register for electronic passport entry is completely outrageous. UAE, NZ and many countries do it for free. An ESTA for the US is only $14 for two years. After all it saves British Border Force employing immigrants to staff the immigration posts at entry points.

 

[ChrisDPom]

Totally agree mate, the rules are archaic.

The he weird one from my reading was my kids got their passport because I was married to their mother (but it actually states "was your British father married to your mother at the time you were born or sometimes afterwards).

So so basically the British government are asking are you this pommy cough's pommy's cough?

 

[TheRealTMA]

Totally agree mate, the rules are archaic.

The he weird one from my reading was my kids got their passport because I was married to their mother (but it actually states "was your British father married to your mother at the time you were born or sometimes afterwards).

So so basically the British government are asking are you this pommy cough's pommy's cough?

"Or sometime afterwards." legal definition would be interesting. And what about same sex marriages now? But that's OT for this thread, really,

 

[Hvr]

<snip>
Staff just didn't seem to care and were asked repeatedly By a number of us if it would be possible to allow people with young children to be allowed through quicker.

<snip>

Why should parents be allowed through first? Surely the first person in the queue should be served first?

 

[Mal]

Registered Traveller is a godsend for me! It is £50 / year, with a £20 application fee (or to transfer to a different passport).

As for visa costs and other immigration sticker costs in the UK, well someone has to pay for the problems they are having with immigration numbers....

 

[ChrisDPom]

Why should parents be allowed through first? Surely the first person in the queue should be served first?

It was more to save everyone's sanity in the massive queue - screaming babies syndrome!!