What is a visa vignette?

A visa vignette is a sticker placed in a passport or travel document as proof of a UK visa. UK Visas and Immigration stopped issuing vignettes to successful new applicants on 1 July 2026 and gives an eVisa instead. A vignette you already hold remains valid until it expires.

How a visa vignette worked

A visa vignette was a sticker placed in a passport or travel document to show that you had a UK visa. GOV.UK shows example images of the category D vignette and the certificate of entitlement vignette.^{[5]Home Office, Examples of UK visa vignettes}

That has changed. UK Visas and Immigration stopped issuing visa vignettes to successful new applicants on 1 July 2026.^{[2]Home Office, Updates on the move to eVisas} GOV.UK says physical visa vignettes are no longer being issued.^{[1]Home Office, How to replace a physical visa if you're outside the UK} A successful application for a visa to come to the UK now gives you an eVisa, which replaces the previous physical immigration documents.^{[2]Home Office, Updates on the move to eVisas}

An eVisa is a digital record of your identity and immigration status. You see it through a UKVI account.^{[4]Home Office, eVisas: access and use your online immigration status}

If you already have a vignette

GOV.UK says a visa vignette will remain valid until it expires.^{[4]Home Office, eVisas: access and use your online immigration status}

All four rows come from GOV.UK’s guidance on replacing a physical visa.^{[1]Home Office, How to replace a physical visa if you're outside the UK}

You will not get a replacement vignette. If you notice an error on your vignette, check your eVisa. If the same error is on your eVisa, you report it online. For any other changes, you update your UKVI account.^{[3]Home Office, How to apply for a visa to come to the UK: Travelling to the UK}

Forms for affixing and accompanying a visa

Some people held a form for affixing a visa, which carried a vignette. If your expired 90-day vignette was on a form for affixing a visa, or the form was lost, stolen or damaged, you need to request a form for accompanying an eVisa before you travel. It costs £154 to apply. You give your fingerprints and photo at a visa application centre, and you will usually get a decision within 3 weeks of proving your identity.^{[1]Home Office, How to replace a physical visa if you're outside the UK}

If you are issued with a form for accompanying an eVisa, you will usually need to return to the visa application centre to collect it. The form, when linked to your eVisa, allows you to travel to the UK.^{[2]Home Office, Updates on the move to eVisas} Before you travel you sign in to your UKVI account to view your eVisa and check your permission.^{[2]Home Office, Updates on the move to eVisas}

Certificates of entitlement

A certificate of entitlement is used by people who have the right of abode. To prove a right to work with one, GOV.UK says it can be a vignette sticker in your passport or a digital certificate in your UKVI account. If it is digital you get a share code online.^{[6]Home Office, Prove your right to work to an employer} Our page on right of abode explains who has it.

GOV.UK also lists some physical documents that can be carried as additional proof of status when travelling. They include a sticker or stamp showing indefinite leave to remain or enter in an old passport, and a right of abode certificate of entitlement in your passport.^{[7]Home Office, eVisas: Travel with your eVisa}

Example

Chen has a valid vignette in his current passport. It expires in 2027. He can use it to travel to and from the UK until then. He also has an eVisa, and he checks it before he flies.

Elena’s vignette is in a passport that has expired, and she has a new one. She can carry both passports and use the vignette. Or she can sign in to her UKVI account, add her new passport details and use her eVisa instead.

What people get wrong

Do not wait for a replacement sticker. GOV.UK says you will not get a replacement vignette. If your passport is lost or your details change, you use your eVisa instead.

If you notice an error on your vignette, GOV.UK says to check your eVisa first. You report an error only if the same mistake is on your eVisa.^{[3]Home Office, How to apply for a visa to come to the UK: Travelling to the UK} For a lost passport or changed details, see the table above.^{[1]Home Office, How to replace a physical visa if you're outside the UK}

The bottom line

A visa vignette was a sticker in a passport. They are no longer issued, and since 1 July 2026 successful applicants get an eVisa. A vignette you already hold remains valid until it expires, and you can use your eVisa in many situations instead. Set up your UKVI account and keep your passport details current.