If you are abroad and worrying about a BRP that has expired, gone missing or was never collected, the problem no longer exists. BRP cards stopped being issued and all of them expired on 31 December 2024. Re-entering the UK no longer depends on holding a card, and the old “BRP replacement visa” is not needed either.

Your status now lives online as an eVisa: a record held by the Home Office, tied to your UKVI account and to your passport. That passport is what the airline checks at boarding and what Border Force checks on arrival.

What that means while you are outside the UK:

  • Travel on the passport linked to your UKVI account. That is the only thing you need with you. No need to show an expired BRP.
  • Changed passports while abroad? Update the details in your UKVI account before you book flights. You can do it online from any country and it is free, but it is not always instant.
  • Locked out of your account? Recovery works from overseas. The process is set out on gov.uk/evisa, with the UKVI support line as a backup. Start it well before departure, not at the airport.
  • Never created a UKVI account? Create it where you are. Your BRP number works as an identifier even though the card expired, as does the passport you applied with. Your permission runs to the date on your visa decision.
  • Lost your BRP overseas. Nothing to report, nothing to replace. The card carries no legal weight now.

Full detail on account setup, share codes, fixing errors in your status and how this works for family: BRP is gone: how the UK eVisa works.

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