The Home Office has made a further change to UK transit visa policy. The Immigration (Passenger Transit Visa) (Amendment) (No. 4) Order 2025 (S.I. 2025/1279) adds Nauru to the list of nationalities that must hold a transit visa to pass through the UK without entering. According to the instrument published on legislation.gov.uk, it was made on 4 December 2025, laid before Parliament on 9 December 2025, and comes into force on 10 December 2025.
The measure amends Schedule 1 to the Immigration (Passenger Transit Visa) Order 2014, which sets out countries or territories whose nationals require a transit visa. The new Order inserts “Nauru” into that Schedule. The Order extends to the whole of the United Kingdom and is made under sections 41 and 166(3) of the Immigration and Asylum Act 1999.
A transitional provision is included. Nationals of Nauru who arrive in the UK on or before 20 January 2026 and who, before 10 December 2025, already held a booking for that journey are not required to hold a transit visa. Both conditions must be met; evidence of the prior booking should be retained for check-in and border enquiries.
In this context, a “transit visa” refers to the document required for airside transit through a UK port when the traveller does not enter the UK. The 2014 Order sets the baseline requirement for such passengers and is the instrument through which the government updates the list of affected nationalities.
The underlying exemptions in article 4 of the 2014 Order continue to apply. Certain document holders-such as travellers with valid visas or permanent residence for Australia, Canada, New Zealand or the United States-may not need a UK transit visa for airside transfer. Travellers should confirm their position against the current exemptions before departure.
For airlines and agents, this is an operational change that should be reflected immediately in document-check procedures from 10 December 2025. Passengers who do not meet the transitional criteria and who lack a valid transit visa may be refused carriage, so carriers should ensure reservation systems and staff guidance are updated.
Policy Wire analysis: this amendment follows a sequence of 2025 changes to the same 2014 Order, including the addition of Trinidad and Tobago in March and Botswana in October, and a November update to the Schedule’s terminology. The six-week window to 20 January 2026 mirrors recent transitional arrangements intended to mitigate disruption to pre-booked travel.
The Explanatory Note to the instrument states that no full impact assessment has been produced as no significant impact on the private or voluntary sector or community bodies is foreseen. The Order is signed by Mike Tapp, Parliamentary Under Secretary of State at the Home Office, and takes effect one day after being laid, rather than following the usual 21-day convention.