7 ms·

The UK doesn't have exit checks.

mmsc 2y ago
Of the ~50 countries I've been to in the past 10 years, The UK is the only one I remember which I did not need to show any ID when leaving. I thought it was strange because this is just one way countries catch overstays.
- zarzavat 2y ago
  They get the records from the airlines. They don’t need to pay someone to stamp passports at the border to know who is overstaying.
  - mmsc 2y ago
    Sure (and I'm not sure if that's actually how it works), but the border control also physically stops someone from leaving after they've overstayed. If someone has overstayed, they just go to the airport and hop on a plane with no consequences.
    - zarzavat 2y ago
      Some countries do fine overstayers, but UK is quite happy for people to leave with no penalty, it just doesn’t want them to come back again afterwards. If someone overstays without a good reason then they are probably not entering the UK again for a long time. The consequences are almost worse without the exit controls because overstayers will waste money on a flight only to get turned around at the border - assuming they don’t need a visa or ETA.
- chatmasta 2y ago
  But what’s the point of catching an overstay if they’re leaving already? It’s more important to catch them when they try to re-enter (at which point you could have collected data from airlines to estimate whether they previously overstayed). Exit checks are pretty pointless if there’s no violation that would lead to enforcement other than deportation (since the traveler is already self-deporting).
  - mmsc 2y ago
    Deportation is just the end result. Fines, blacklisting, even imprisonment is possible in many countries.
    - portaouflop 2y ago
      So you keep them from leaving and imprison them in your country (essentially paying for their upkeep and rendering them useless for your economy). And you do that to solve the problem of illegal immigration. It’s so stupid it sounds like a policy some right wingers in my country might actually want to make reality.
    - ClumsyPilot 2y ago
      Britain has a fairly unique attitude, it must be left-over from the empire - best summed up as "this is the garden of Eden, and the worst punishment is exile' When the 15 year old girl joined Isis, and then subsequently re-appeared in a refugee camp with a newborn, there was little desire to arrest her and figure out if she is guilty or a victim. We just took away her British passport and washed our hands of her. I thought the government would at least rescue the baby, but apparently nobody cared and it perished in the inhumane conditions of the refugee camp. This is somewhat unique - for example Russia could come after you, or arrest you on entry, but they don't have this idea of exile as punishment.
      - wildylion 2y ago
        You sure they don't? As in, 'you have 2 days to GTFO, or we'll land you in prison for a few years to think of your actions'. Happened many, many times since the start of this horrific war and many times before. Source: I'm one of the lucky ones who managed to GTFO from Russia and find a job abroad. Also, Russia is [contemplating](https://novayagazeta.eu/articles/2024/04/25/russia-reportedly-contemplates-ban-on-issuing-passports-abroad-en-news#:~:text=The%20draft%20proposal%20would%20introduce,a%20flat%2Dout%20lie%E2%80%9D https://novayagazeta.eu/articles/2024/04/25/russia-reportedl....) stopping issuing passports abroad - to try and catch the 'undesirables' again. Which would leave many people de-facto stateless. This is what Belarus did quite a while ago, by the way.
- jowea 2y ago
  Maybe it's a requirement for for air travel only? Why do all those countries bother? Surely they don't all have exit visa requirements?
spullara 2y ago
When taking the Chunnel recently there are two passport checks on the way to the train, leaving UK and then 20 ft later entering France.

mmsc 2y ago

Of the ~50 countries I've been to in the past 10 years, The UK is the only one I remember which I did not need to show any ID when leaving. I thought it was strange because this is just one way countries catch overstays.

zarzavat 2y ago
They get the records from the airlines. They don’t need to pay someone to stamp passports at the border to know who is overstaying.
- mmsc 2y ago
  Sure (and I'm not sure if that's actually how it works), but the border control also physically stops someone from leaving after they've overstayed. If someone has overstayed, they just go to the airport and hop on a plane with no consequences.
  - zarzavat 2y ago
    Some countries do fine overstayers, but UK is quite happy for people to leave with no penalty, it just doesn’t want them to come back again afterwards. If someone overstays without a good reason then they are probably not entering the UK again for a long time. The consequences are almost worse without the exit controls because overstayers will waste money on a flight only to get turned around at the border - assuming they don’t need a visa or ETA.
chatmasta 2y ago
But what’s the point of catching an overstay if they’re leaving already? It’s more important to catch them when they try to re-enter (at which point you could have collected data from airlines to estimate whether they previously overstayed). Exit checks are pretty pointless if there’s no violation that would lead to enforcement other than deportation (since the traveler is already self-deporting).
- mmsc 2y ago
  Deportation is just the end result. Fines, blacklisting, even imprisonment is possible in many countries.
  - portaouflop 2y ago
    So you keep them from leaving and imprison them in your country (essentially paying for their upkeep and rendering them useless for your economy). And you do that to solve the problem of illegal immigration. It’s so stupid it sounds like a policy some right wingers in my country might actually want to make reality.
  - ClumsyPilot 2y ago
    Britain has a fairly unique attitude, it must be left-over from the empire - best summed up as "this is the garden of Eden, and the worst punishment is exile' When the 15 year old girl joined Isis, and then subsequently re-appeared in a refugee camp with a newborn, there was little desire to arrest her and figure out if she is guilty or a victim. We just took away her British passport and washed our hands of her. I thought the government would at least rescue the baby, but apparently nobody cared and it perished in the inhumane conditions of the refugee camp. This is somewhat unique - for example Russia could come after you, or arrest you on entry, but they don't have this idea of exile as punishment.
    - wildylion 2y ago
      You sure they don't? As in, 'you have 2 days to GTFO, or we'll land you in prison for a few years to think of your actions'. Happened many, many times since the start of this horrific war and many times before. Source: I'm one of the lucky ones who managed to GTFO from Russia and find a job abroad. Also, Russia is [contemplating](https://novayagazeta.eu/articles/2024/04/25/russia-reportedly-contemplates-ban-on-issuing-passports-abroad-en-news#:~:text=The%20draft%20proposal%20would%20introduce,a%20flat%2Dout%20lie%E2%80%9D https://novayagazeta.eu/articles/2024/04/25/russia-reportedl....) stopping issuing passports abroad - to try and catch the 'undesirables' again. Which would leave many people de-facto stateless. This is what Belarus did quite a while ago, by the way.
jowea 2y ago
Maybe it's a requirement for for air travel only? Why do all those countries bother? Surely they don't all have exit visa requirements?

spullara 2y ago

When taking the Chunnel recently there are two passport checks on the way to the train, leaving UK and then 20 ft later entering France.