The new fee schedule will come into effect on Thursday (26 May) and will apply until September 2027.

The Esta system, Electronic System for Travel Authorisation (Esta), allows arrivals from 40 participating countries, including the UK, to enter the US for up to 90 days without having to acquire a formal visa.

It was introduced in August 2007, ostensibly as a security measure, as part of recommendations arising from the 9/11 Commission Act.

It is described as: "A fully automated electronic travel authorisation system to collect biographical and other information as the Secretary of Homeland Security determines necessary to evaluate, in advance of travel, the eligibility of the applicant to travel to the United States under the Visa Waiver Program, and whether such travel poses a law enforcement or security risk."

Between 2016 and 2019, there were approximately 15 million applications a year for Estas. This fell to 6.31 million in 2020 and to just 1.26 million last year.

"Prior to the Covid pandemic... after FY 2019, travel decreased substantially, and we expect that travel will remain lower through FY 2022, though forecasting travel coming out of a pandemic is difficult," said US Customs and Border Protection (CBP).

If applications return to pre-pandemic levels promptly, the new charge cold generate an additional $108 million fee revenue. US CBP is looking at discounts should Esta applications recover to pre-pandemic levels prior to 2027.