>The apps — for iPhone and Android — boast of being quicker, with 10-minute processing times<p>10 min is not quick in modern world. Especially when previously it was 0.<p>May be the whole world government could just make a single Visa application that they all agree on and just let me pay automatically when I buy a plane ticket.<p>Charge me 50% more than what you are charging now. ( around $6? ) and get rid of the hassle.<p>Instead they are introducing <i>MORE</i> bureaucracy.
All this "Oh, no, you're not applying for a visa, you're applying for authority to travel" is such bullshit.<p>It's just a Visa in a trenchcoat.
The UK introduced this to mirror / sync with the EU ETIAS evisa system introduced recently, which in turn mirrors the US ESTA eVisa. They all cost about the same.<p>It's interesting how UK stories are reported.