NEW GAR REGULATIONS FOR PILOTS

Introduction of ‘’the 2024 Regulations’’

GA owners or agents and captains are required to provide information about the GA flight and persons on board to the Home Office in accordance with the General Aviation (Persons on Board, Flight Information and Civil Penalties) Regulations 2024 (“the 2024 Regulations”).

In accordance with the 2024 Regulations, the persons responsible for the flight are required to provide:

  • Specified information about the flight and persons on board,
  • Specified information to be provided within a specified time,
  • Form and manner in which the specified information is to be provided,
  • To be able to receive during the relevant period, communications relating to that information from Border Force on behalf of the Secretary of State via telephone or the email address provided.

Responsible Person

Regulation 2(2) of the 2024 regulations requires a ‘responsible person’ to provide the information about the flight and persons on board.

Responsible person is defined in paragraph 27BA (5) of Schedule 2 to the Immigration Act 1971 and paragraph 32A(7) of the Immigration, Asylum and Nationality Act 2006.

For the purposes of this paragraph, the following are responsible persons in respect of a ship or aircraft — (a) the owner or agent, and (b) the captain. Any actions related to a breach of the regulations will fall to the registered responsible person for the flight.

Specified Information

For all international flights, the following fields of advance passenger (API) information must be provided,

  • full name,
  • sex,
  • date of birth,
  • nationality,
  • type of travel document,
  • number of travel document,
  • expiry date of travel document,
  • issuing state of travel document.

For all flights, the information must additionally show whether each person onboard is the captain of the aircraft, a member of crew or a passenger.

  • For all flights, the following flight information must also be provided,
  • the aircraft registration mark,
  • the aircraft type,
  • the aircraft’s home aerodrome or usual base expressed as an ICAO location indicator or IATA code or, where neither is available, a co-ordinate,
  • expected departure date,
  • expected departure time,
  • expected arrival date,
  • expected arrival time,
  • the place from which the flight is departing or departed immediately prior to arrival in the United Kingdom expressed by reference to: (i) an ICAO location indicator (ii) an IATA code, or (iii) a co-ordinate (where neither an ICAO location indicator or IATA code is available),
  • the number of persons on board the aircraft; and,
  • the name, address, email address and contact telephone number of the responsible person,

The API provided must match the information held in the travel document(s) presented by the passengers and crew members on board. The information provided about the flight must also correspond to the specific flight being made. Any differences will result in action take by Border Force

Specified Time

The information about the flight and persons onboard must be submitted no earlier than 48 hours and no later than 2 hours prior to expected time of departure. If information regarding persons on board or the aircraft itself changes prior to departure then the specified time of submission of data will reset and pilots or operators will be required to abide by the 48-2 hour requirement.

Specified Form and Manner

The responsible person must submit information about the GA flight and persons on board online. The following are the accepted submission methods: