Visa requirements for British citizens
Entry restrictions by the authorities of other states placed on citizens of the United Kingdom
Visa requirements for British citizens are administrative entry restrictions by the authorities of other states placed on citizens of the United Kingdom.
As of 2025, British citizens have visa-free or visa on arrival access to 186 countries and territories, ranking the British passport 6th in the world according to the Henley Passport Index.
Additionally, the World Tourism Organisation also published a report on 15 January 2016 ranking the passport 1st in the world (tied with Denmark, Finland, Germany, Italy, Luxembourg and Singapore) in terms of travel freedom, with the mobility index of 160 (out of 215 with no visa weighted by: 1, visa on arrival weighted by 0.7, e-Visa weighted by 0.5 and traditional visa weighted by 0).
The United Kingdom left the European Union on 31 January 2020 and thus lost the freedom of movement to EU countries on 31 December 2020. However, UK citizens are still eligible for visa-free access for short-term visits to the Schengen Area.
Visa requirements for other classes of British nationals such as British Nationals (Overseas), British Overseas Citizens, British Overseas Territories Citizens, British Protected Persons or British Subjects are different.
History.
Visa requirements for British citizens were lifted by many European nations in the few years after World War II. The first changes occurred in 1947. These were removed by France on 1 January 1947.
This was then quickly followed by Belgium on 15 February 1947, Luxembourg 15 February 1947, Norway on 1 March 1947, Denmark on 22 March 1947, Sweden on 1 April 1947, Netherlands on 15 April 1947, Switzerland on 24 June 1947 Liechtenstein on 24 June 1947 and Iceland on 1 July 1947.
The requirement was lifted by Italy on 1 January 1948, Monaco (8 November 1948), Austria (15 May 1955), Paraguay (27 November 1966), United States (1 July 1988), Poland (1 July 1992), Bulgaria (March 1997), Romania (1 January 2001), Serbia and Montenegro (31 May 2003), Ukraine (1 May 2005), Georgia (1 June 2006), Moldova (1 January 2007), Kyrgyzstan (27 July 2012), Armenia (10 January 2013), Kazakhstan (15 July 2014), Indonesia (13 June 2015), Vietnam (1 July 2015) Belarus (12 February 2017), Cape Verde (1 January 2019), Uzbekistan (1 February 2019), Turkey (2 March 2020) and Oman (December 2020).
Electronic visas for British citizens were introduced: India (15 August 2015), Djibouti (18 February 2018), Malawi (October 2019) and Mongolia (November 2021). In April 2021, India announced that it would stop issuing Electronic visas for British citizens from August 2021, however this was reinstated in December 2022.
Honduras cancelled a visa-free regime for British citizens as a reciprocal measure in August 2024. Similarly, Namibia will introduce visas for British citizens for reciprocity reasons, starting April 2025.
Visa requirements.
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Common Travel Area.
The United Kingdom, together with its Crown Dependencies of Guernsey, Jersey and the Isle of Man and the Republic of Ireland make up a Common Travel Area where:
However, there are occasionally checks on coaches and trains moving between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland. British citizens living in Ireland have many of the same rights and entitlements as an Irish citizen. Citizens of third countries must have passports and, if required, visas to travel between the United Kingdom and Republic of Ireland.
British visas don't enable travel to Ireland for people without agreement with Ireland, and vice versa. Passengers travelling between the Common Travel Area and the Schengen Area are subject to systematic passport/identity checks.
British Crown Dependencies and Overseas Territories.
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Territories and disputed areas.
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Non-ordinary passports.
Holders of exclusive categories of British passports have this visa-free access, to: China , Kuwait , Mongolia , Qatar and the United Arab Emirates . Holders of diplomatic or service passports of any country have visa-free access to Ethiopia, and Zimbabwe. Holders of British official and diplomatic passports require a visa for South Africa.
Travel consequences of Brexit.
On 23 June 2016, a majority of the British electorate who voted, did so to leave the European Union in a nationwide referendum.
In March 2017, the UK sent notification of their intention to leave the EU to the European Council through Article 50 of the Lisbon Treaty. British citizens ceased to be EU citizens upon the UK's departure from the EU thus forfeiting the rights of citizens.
The UK withdrew from the EU on 31 January 2020, but British citizens retained the right of freedom of movement until the transitional period ended on 31 December 2020.
From 1 January 2021, when EU law ceased to apply to the United Kingdom, British citizens are afforded visa-free visits to the Schengen Area, for 90 days in any 180-day period. British citizens also enjoy visa-free entry to Bulgaria and Romania.
From sometime in 2025, most visa-exempt travellers seeking entry to the EU and EEA must apply and pay for travel authorisation through ETIAS. This was confirmed on 12 September 2018 and has no exception, yet agreed, for British citizens. This excludes British-Irish travel which is governed by laws that pre-date the European Community.
When in a non-EU country where there is no British embassy, British citizens no longer have the right to consular protection from the embassy of any other EU country present in that country.
Consular protection of British citizens abroad.
When in a country where there is no British embassy, British citizens may get help from the embassy of any other commonwealth country present in that country. There are also informal arrangements with some other countries, including New Zealand and Australia, to help British nationals in some countries.
See also List of diplomatic missions of the United Kingdom.
References and notes.
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Australian passport
Passport issued to Australian citizens
An Australian passport is a travel document issued by the Commonwealth of Australia to individuals holding any form of Australian nationality. The document facilitates access to consular assistance from Australian embassies around the world, and are issued by the Australian Passport Office, an agency of the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT). As of July 2024, Australian citizens had visa-free or visa on arrival access to 188 countries and territories, ranking the passport eighth in the world for travel freedom according to the Henley Passport Index.
Since 24 October 2005, Australia has issued only biometric passports, called ePassports, which have an embedded microchip that contains the same personal information that is on the colour photo page of the passport, including a digitised photograph. As all previous passports have now expired, all Australian passports are now biometric. SmartGates have been installed in Australian airports to allow Australian ePassport holders and ePassport holders of several other countries to clear immigration controls more rapidly, and facial recognition technology has been installed at immigration gates.
An Australian passport application is the most expensive in the world, costing A$412 as of 1 January 2025. Since 1988 over a million Australian passports have been issued annually, and it reached 1.4 million in 2007, and increasing towards a projected 3 million annually by 2021. As of late-2023, approximately 14.2 million Australian citizens (or just over 53% of the population) possessed a valid Australian passport.
History.
Before 1901, Australia consisted of six separate British colonies. Passport usage was not common, and if required British or other national passports were used. In the 19th century, paroled convicts were issued a type of internal passport called "ticket of leave", which enabled them to move freely between the colonies. In 1901, the six colonies joined to form the Commonwealth of Australia, although Australians retained British nationality. It was only in 1912 that the first federal passport regulations were introduced, and the passports issued by the Australian government still bore the words "British Passport" on the cover until 1967. During World War I, the monitoring and identifying of those crossing international borders was regarded as critical to the security of Australia and its allies, and the "War Precautions Act 1914" required all persons over 16 years of age, on leaving Australia, to possess some passport.
Australian nationality came into existence on 12 January 1990 when the "Nationality and Citizenship Act 1948" came into force, and Australian passports began to distinguish between Australian citizens and other British subjects. British subjects, who were not Australian citizens, continued to be entitled to an Australian passport. The term "British subject" had a particular meaning in Australian nationality law. The term encompassed all citizens of countries included in the list contained in the "Nationality and Citizenship Act 1948". The list of countries was based on, but was not identical with, those countries (and their colonies) which were members of the Commonwealth from time to time. The list was amended from time to time as various former colonies became independent countries, but the list in the Act was not necessarily up-to-date as far as to constitute exactly a list of countries in the Commonwealth at any given time. This definition of "British subject" meant that, for the purposes of Australian nationality law, citizens of countries which had become republics, such as India, were classified as "British subjects". The words "British Passport" were removed from the covers of Australian passports in 1967.
In 1981, the Commonwealth, Queensland, New South Wales and Victorian governments set up the Stewart Royal Commission to inquire into various drug trafficking and related criminal activities, but which spent much of its time examining how criminals were using and abusing the passport system for criminal purposes. The Commission published its final report in 1983, making recommendations on how to prevent such abuses, most of which were acted upon by the federal government. The report's recommendations included that applicants for a passport attend a Passport Office and that mailed applications cease; that passports be issued only to citizens, so that British subjects would cease to be entitled to a passport; that birth certificates not be accepted as a sufficient proof of identity; that passports cease to be issued through travel or other agents; and that all persons who change their name, whether by choice, marriage or adoption, be required to register the change with State Registrars of births, deaths and marriages. The legal category of British subject was abolished in 1984 by the "Australian Citizenship (Amendment) Act 1984", and Australian passports began to be issued exclusively to Australian citizens, though existing passports held by non-citizen British subjects continued to be valid until each expired.
In 1980, large bound book registers were replaced by a computerised processing and registration system, called the Passport Issue and Control System (PICS). Since 1984, to speed up processing of incoming and outgoing passengers and data entry, Australia has been issuing passports with machine readable lines, to ICAO Document 9303 standard. Since 24 October 2005, Australia has issued only biometric passports, called ePassports, which have an embedded RFID microchip that contains the same personal information that is on the colour photo page of the passport, including a digitised photograph. Australia was only the fourth country in the world (after Malaysia, Thailand and Sweden) to introduce biometric passports. All Australian passports are now biometric, all pre-2006 passports having now expired. SmartGates have been installed in Australian airports to allow Australian ePassport holders, and ePassport holders of several other countries, to clear immigration controls more rapidly, and facial recognition technology has been installed at immigration gates to capture and save a biometric profile of passport holders as well as to compare against the immigration database and watchlist. Australia does not use fingerprinting of incoming passengers, as is done by some other countries.
Types of passport.
The Australian Government issues passports to provide an internationally accepted attestation of their citizens' identity. To facilitate this global recognition, several types of passports are issued.
These are broadly issued in these categories:
Certain non-passport travel documents may also be issued, with eligibility not limited to citizens:
Beyond these, other "documents for travel" are issued in limited circumstances: ImmiCard, PLO56 (M56), Document for Travel to Australia (DFTTA). These are issued to protection or humanitarian visa holders, or persons in similar circumstances warranting their issue.
Passports and Documents of Identity are ordinarily worth 70 points in the 100 point check system, and can be used as an authoritative identity document throughout Australia. Passports issued with full validity can be used as an identity document for up to two years after their expiry.
Ordinary passport.
These are the passports most commonly issued to Australian citizens. An applicant must satisfy the identity and citizenship requirements. When they are unable to meet these requirements, a Limited Validity Passport (LVP) or Document of Identity may be compassionately issued. LVPs are identical to ordinary passports, but are valid for up to 12 months.
Ordinary passports are ordinarily valid for 5 or 10 years. Children under 16 years of age are issued 5 year passports, and adults aged 75 or over may choose a 5 or 10 year validity. Other adult applicants are normally issued passports with a 10-year validity. Exceptions to this exist, such as in the case of concurrent passports.
As of 2024[ [update]], ordinary passports have 34 usable visa pages. A frequent traveller variant with 66 visa pages was phased out in December 2017 due to decreased demand as many countries stopped using physical visas or stamps.
Diplomatic and official passport.
These are issued to people employed by or acting on behalf of the Australian Government, and are primarily for individuals in defined categories and roles, required to represent the Australian Government overseas in an official capacity. These passports may sometimes be issued to dependents of the principal applicant, where necessary to facilitate their travel or safety.
These passports may only be issued to Australian citizens whose role or purpose of travel fits within the Ministerial Guidelines. Issuance is tightly controlled, due to the significance of formally representing an individual as acting overseas on behalf of the Australian Government.
Unlike Ordinary passports, individuals have certain legislative and contractual obligations to the Australian Government when using or holding these passports. These passports may be cancelled without notice, if used outside the relevant provisions in the Ministerial Guidelines.
Emergency passport.
These are issued at overseas posts to facilitate the urgent travel of Australian citizens who meet all requirements but cannot wait three weeks for the issue of a full validity passport.
These passport do not include a passport chip as they are issued by overseas posts that do not have the capability to produce ePassports. Because they are not a biometric travel document, travel on an these passport may require a visa, even where Australian citizens can usually travel visa-free.
Australian citizens who cannot meet all requirements for an ordinary passport, but can satisfy the citizenship and identity requirements, or need to travel urgently and cannot wait for an ordinary passport. Issuance is strictly controlled, particularly where usual requirements cannot be met.
They are valid for up to 12 months, though normally they are valid for 7 months.
Special circumstance passports.
In limited circumstances, Australian citizens may be issued passports outside of the usual requirements. Such passports will always be issued in one of the above categories: ordinary, official or diplomatic. Other than for an emergency passport, their appearance is identical.
Concurrent passport.
A concurrent passport is an additional passport issued to an individual who already holds a valid passport of the same category (ordinary, official or diplomatic). Issuance of these is very tightly controlled, and granted to enable travel in exceptional circumstances.
Concurrent passports are most often granted when traveling (or transiting) a country that will not accept evidence of travel to certain places, or where significant delays will result in having to wait for the return of a passport following (unrelated) visa issuance. Other circumstances may be considered, requiring authorisation by more senior staff.
These passports are valid for up to 3 years, except that an emergency passport is valid for up to 12 months. The validity period will usually be limited to the duration of travel needs plus 6 months.
Limited validity passport.
These are issued to Australian citizens who cannot provide full documentation, provided their identity and citizenship have been confirmed. They are issued to applicants with incomplete or inconsistent documentation, to allow them to travel in the interim. They are identical to regular passports, but with shorter validity. They are valid for up to 12 months, and available from within Australia only.
LVPs are most commonly offered to applicants with incomplete or inconsistent documentation around name or gender, such as following a name change. These applicants may hold cardinal documents, such as a birth certificate, differing from their current identity, without sufficient documentation to corroborate the difference.
On completion of a full application and satisfaction of the usual requirements, a LVP may be exchanged for an ordinary passport, free of charge.
Physical appearance.
The current series Australian passport is blue, with the Australian coat of arms emblazoned in at the top of the front cover. "AUSTRALIA" is written below the coat of arms and, below it, "PASSPORT" is written. Toward the bottom of the cover the international e-passport symbol (). The standard passport contains 42 visa pages.
Identity information page.
The Australian passport includes the following data:
The information page ends with the machine readable zone.
Passport note.
The passports contain inside the front cover a note that is addressed to the authorities of all countries and territories, identifying the bearer as a citizen of Australia and requesting that the bearer be allowed to pass and be treated according to international norms:
<templatestyles src="Template:Blockquote/styles.css" />The Governor-General of the Commonwealth of Australia, being the representative in Australia of His Majesty King Charles the Third, requests all those whom it may concern to allow the bearer, an Australian Citizen, to pass freely without let or hindrance and to afford him or her every assistance and protection of which he or she may stand in need.
Passports issued during the reign of Queen Elizabeth II (1952–2022):
<templatestyles src="Template:Blockquote/styles.css" />The Governor-General of the Commonwealth of Australia, being the representative in Australia of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth the Second, requests all those whom it may concern to allow the bearer, an Australian Citizen, to pass freely without let or hindrance and to afford him or her every assistance and protection of which he or she may stand in need.
Languages.
The passport is printed in English. French translation is found on the identity information.
Biometric chip.
The embedded chip stores the owner's digitised photograph, name, sex, date of birth, nationality, passport number, and the passport expiry date. This is the same information that appears on the printed information page of every passport. Facial recognition technology was introduced with the release of the ePassport to improve identity verification and reduce identity-related fraud.
Sex and gender diverse.
Australian Government policy is to record gender and not sex. Australian travel documents allow for recording of non-binary gender, one of fewer than 10 countries known to do so. Replacement passports are issued for free to applicants whose details have changed in the course of gender transition.
Applicants may choose to have the "Sex" (this name being an ICAO requirement) field on their passport recorded as "M", "F", or "X". While unavailable on passports due to ICAO requirements, a "Document of Identity" may be issued with the sex field blank.
The sex recorded does not need to match that on a birth certificate or any other documents. For those without revised identity documents, who have not previously been issued a passport in the desired gender, a brief statement by a registered doctor or psychologist is sufficient. Where unable to get a letter from a doctor or psychologist, applicants are encouraged to inform the APO, so alternative arrangements can be considered.
Administrative policy of the APO and Department of Foreign Affairs aim to prevent unnecessary distress or offence. Refusal of applications from sex and gender diverse applicants, for lack of documentation or otherwise, is prohibited. Staff are required to not ask for extra information or documents, when applications are made. After lodgement, applications from sex and gender diverse applicants are required to be handled at all times by Executive Level officers with suitable sex and gender diverse training.
Applications for a passport.
The 100-point personal identification system applies to new applicants for an Australian passport, and an Australian passport can in turn be used as an identification document of the passport holder (worth 70 points in the 100-point check scheme).
The 100-point personal identification system does not apply to a renewal of a passport, in Australia or overseas by using the PC7 form. To be eligible for the PC7 form, your most recently issued adult passport is required, and it must be issued with a validity of at least 2 years (i.e. it is not an Emergency Passport or a limited validity document); AND
was issued in your current name, date of birth and sex; AND
has not been lost, stolen or damaged; AND
is current or expired less than three years ago.
The demanded Australian passport photo dimensions are:
Renewal.
Australian citizens, aged 18 years or over who have an adult Australian passport that was valid for at least two years when issued, and was issued on or after 1 July 2000, in the current name, date of birth and sex or have a child Australian passport that was valid for at least two years when issued, and was issued on or after 1 July 2005, and that were 16 years or over at the time of issue may apply online for a renewal. If overseas, this may be done by contacting the nearest Australian diplomatic mission.
Renewals are not available for lost or stolen passports, in which case an application for a new passport must be made.
Refusal to issue passport.
Under the "Australian Passports Act 2005", the Minister for Foreign Affairs has the power to refuse, cancel or suspend a passport on a number of grounds including national security or health. In addition, a court can order an accused in a criminal matter, or any other person, to surrender their passport, for example, as a condition of grant of bail or otherwise.
In May 2017, the Turnbull government successfully reached a deal with Derryn Hinch's Justice Party to allow the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade to revoke the passports of 20,000 convicted child sex offenders listed on Australia's national child offender register, of which about 3,200 offenders with lifetime reporting requirements were to be permanently denied the opportunity to obtain a passport and hence the ability to travel outside Australia for life. This was described as a "world-first" passport-ban policy intended to combat child sex tourism perpetuated by Australian citizens especially in developing countries.
Five Nations Passport Group.
Since 2004, Australia has participated in the Five Nations Passport Group, an international forum for cooperation between the passport issuing authorities in the United Kingdom, Canada, New Zealand, and the United States to "share best practices and discuss innovations related to the development of passport policies, products and practices".
Visa requirements.
An Australian passport does not, in itself, entitle the holder to enter another country. To enter another country, the traveller must comply with the visa and entry requirements of the other countries to be visited, which vary from country to country and may apply specifically to a particular passport type, the traveller's nationality, criminal history, or many other factors.
As of February 2024, Australian citizens had visa-free or visa on arrival access to 190 countries and territories, ranking the Australian passport fifth in the world in terms of travel freedom (tied with Greece, Malta, New Zealand and Switzerland) according to the Henley Passport Index.
Foreign travel statistics.
According to the statistics these are the numbers of Australian visitors to various countries per annum in 2015 (unless otherwise noted):
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Declared area offence.
It is an offence under Australian law for Australians to enter, or remain in, certain regions designated as 'declared areas'. The Government may declare an area (but not a whole country) if it considers terrorists are operating in that area. The maximum penalty is 10 years imprisonment. However, it is a defence if a person can show they entered or remained in the area for a legitimate purpose prescribed in the regulations.
As of November 2020[ [update]], there were no active 'declared areas'.
Former declared areas were:
References.
Citations.
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Sources.
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Travel visa
Authority to enter, stay in, or exit a territory
A visa (from la " charta visa" 'papers that have been seen'; also known as visa stamp) is a conditional authorization granted by a polity to a foreigner that allows them to enter, remain within, or leave its territory. Visas typically include limits on the duration of the foreigner's stay, areas within the country they may enter, the dates they may enter, the number of permitted visits, or if the individual can work in the country in question. Visas are associated with the request for permission to enter a territory and thus are, in most countries, distinct from actual formal permission for an alien to enter and remain in the country. In each instance, a visa is subject to border control at the time of actual entry and can be revoked at any time. Visa evidence most commonly takes the form of a sticker endorsed in the applicant's passport or other travel document but may also exist electronically. Some countries no longer issue physical visa evidence, instead recording details only in border security databases.
Some countries require that their citizens, and sometimes foreign travelers, obtain an exit visa in order to be allowed to leave the country. Until 2004, foreign students in Russia were issued only an entry visa on being accepted to University there, and had to obtain an exit visa to return home. This policy has since been changed, and foreign students are now issued multiple entry (and exit) visas.
Historically, border security officials were empowered to permit or reject entry of visitors on arrival at the frontiers. If permitted entry, the official would issue a visa, when required, which would be a stamp in a passport. Today, travellers wishing to enter another country must often apply in advance for what is also called a visa, sometimes in person at a consular office, by post, or over the Internet. The modern visa may be a sticker or a stamp in the passport, an electronic record of the authorization, or a separate document which the applicant can print before entering and produce on entry to the visited polity. Some countries do not require visitors to apply for a visa in advance for short visits.
Visa applications in advance of arrival give countries a chance to consider the applicant's circumstances, such as financial security, reason for travel, and details of previous visits to the country. Visitors may also be required to undergo and pass security or health checks upon arrival at the port of entry.
Some polities which restrict emigration require individuals to possess an exit visa to leave the polity. These exit visas may be required for citizens, foreigners, or both, depending on the policies of the polity concerned. Unlike ordinary visas, exit visas are often seen as an illegitimate intrusion on individuals' right to freedom of movement. The imposition of an exit visa requirement may be seen to violate customary international law, as the right to leave any country is provided for in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
Uniquely, the Norwegian special territory of Svalbard is an entirely visa-free zone under the terms of the Svalbard Treaty. Some countries—such as those in the Schengen Area—have agreements with other countries allowing each other's citizens to travel between them without visas. In 2015, the World Tourism Organization announced that the number of tourists requiring a visa before travelling was at its lowest level ever.
History.
The history of passports dates back several centuries, originating from early travel documents used to ensure safe passage across regions. One of the earliest known references to a passport-like document comes from 445 BCE in Persia, where officials were provided letters by the king for safe travel. Similarly, during the Han Dynasty in China, documents were required at checkpoints to verify travelers' identities. In medieval Europe, rulers issued "safe conduct" letters that protected travelers. In 1414, during the reign of King Henry V of England, passports became more formalized, allowing foreigners and citizens to travel safely within England. The 19th century saw an increase in international travel due to the Industrial Revolution, which led to the widespread adoption of passports, particularly for managing the movement of migrant workers.
In Western Europe in the late 19th century and early 20th century, passports and visas were not generally necessary for moving from one country to another. The relatively high speed and large movements of people travelling by train would have caused bottlenecks if regular passport controls had been used. Passports and visas became usually necessary as travel documents only after World War I.
After World War I, passports became essential for international travel. The League of Nations convened conferences in the 1920s to standardise passports, setting the foundation for modern versions. The International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) took over regulation in 1947, leading to machine-readable passports and, eventually, biometric passports in the late 20th century, offering enhanced security and speed in processing travelers.
Issuing authorities.
Some visas can be granted on arrival or by prior application at the country's embassy or consulate, or through a private visa service specialist who is specialized in the issuance of international travel documents. These agencies are authorized by the foreign authority, embassy, or consulate to represent international travellers who are unable or unwilling to travel to the embassy and apply in person. Private visa and passport services collect an additional fee for verifying customer applications, supporting documents, and submitting them to the appropriate authority. If there is no embassy or consulate in one's home country, then one would have to travel to a third country (or apply by post) and try to get a visa issued there. Alternatively, in such cases visas may be pre-arranged for collection on arrival at the border. The need or absence of need of a visa generally depends on the citizenship of the applicant, the intended duration of the stay, and the activities that the applicant may wish to undertake in the country he or she visits; these may delineate different formal categories of visas, with different issue conditions.
The issuing authority, usually a branch of the country's foreign ministry or department (e.g. U.S. State Department), and typically consular affairs officers, may request appropriate documentation from the applicant. This may include proof that the applicant is able to support him or herself in the host country (lodging, food), proof that the person hosting the applicant in his or her home really exists and has sufficient room for hosting the applicant, proof that the applicant has obtained health and evacuation insurance, etc. Some countries ask for proof of health status, especially for long-term visas; some countries deny such visas to persons with certain illnesses, such as HIV/AIDS. The exact conditions depend on the country and category of visa. Notable examples of countries requiring HIV tests of long-term residents are Russia and Uzbekistan. In Uzbekistan, however, the HIV test requirement is sometimes not strictly enforced. Other countries require a medical test that includes an HIV test, even for a short-term tourism visa. For example, Cuban citizens and international exchange students require such a test approved by a medical authority to enter Chilean territory.
The issuing authority may also require applicants to attest that they have no criminal convictions, or that they do not participate in certain activities (like prostitution or drug trafficking). Some countries will deny visas if passports show evidence of citizenship of, or travel to, a country that is considered hostile by that country. For example, some Arabic-oriented countries will not issue visas to nationals of Israel and those whose passports bear evidence of visiting Israel.
Many countries frequently demand strong evidence of intent to return to the home country, if the visa is for a temporary stay, due to potential unwanted illegal immigration. Proof of ties to the visa applicant's country of residence is often demanded to demonstrate a sufficient incentive to return. This can include things such as documented evidence of employment, bank statements, property ownership, and family ties.
Visa policies.
The main reasons states impose visa restrictions on foreign nationals are to curb illegal immigration, security concerns, and reciprocity for visa restrictions imposed on their own nationals. Typically, nations impose visa restrictions on citizens of poorer countries, along with politically unstable and undemocratic ones, as it is considered more likely that people from these countries will seek to illegally immigrate. Visa restrictions may also be imposed when nationals of another country are perceived as likelier to be terrorists or criminals, or by autocratic regimes that perceive foreign influence to be a threat to their rule. According to Professor Eric Neumayer of the London School of Economics:
The poorer, the less democratic, and the more exposed to armed political conflict the target country is, the more likely that visa restrictions are in place against its passport holders. The same is true for countries whose nationals have been major perpetrators of terrorist acts in the past.
Some countries apply the principle of reciprocity in their visa policy. Visa reciprocity is a principle in international relations where two countries agree to give each other's citizens similar treatment when it comes to visa requirements. For example visa reciprocity is a central principle of the EU's common visa policy. The EU aims to achieve full visa reciprocity with non-EU countries whose citizens can travel to the EU without a visa. For example, when in 2009, Canada reintroduced visa requirements for Czech nationals, arguing it was necessary due to a surge in asylum applications, it raised concerns within the EU about the implications for the common visa policy, the importance of reciprocity in maintaining good relations and ensuring equal treatment for citizens of member states.
Government authorities usually impose administrative entry restrictions on foreign citizens in three ways – countries whose nationals may enter without a visa, countries whose nationals may obtain a visa on arrival, and countries whose nationals require a visa in advance. Nationals who require a visa in advance are usually advised to obtain them at a diplomatic mission of their destination country. Several countries allow nationals of countries that require a visa to obtain them online.
The following table lists visa policies of all countries by the number of foreign nationalities that may enter that country for tourism without a visa or by obtaining a visa on arrival with normal passport. It also notes countries that issue electronic visas to certain nationalities. Symbol "+" indicates a country that limits the visa-free regime negatively by only listing nationals who require a visa, thus the number represents the number of UN member states reduced by the number of nationals who require a visa and "+" stands for all possible non-UN member state nationals that might also not require a visa. "N/A" indicates countries that have contradictory information on its official websites or information supplied by the Government to IATA. Some countries that allow visa on arrival do so only at a limited number of entry points. Some countries such as the European Union member states have a qualitatively different visa regime between each other as it also includes freedom of movement.
The following table is current as of 2019[ [update]]. Source:
Visa exemption agreements.
Possession of a valid visa is a condition for entry into many countries, and exemption schemes exist. In some cases visa-free entry may be granted to holders of diplomatic passports even as visas are required by normal passport holders ("see: Passport").
Some countries have reciprocal agreements such that a visa is not needed under certain conditions, e.g., when the visit is for tourism and for a relatively short period. Such reciprocal agreements may stem from common membership in international organizations or a shared heritage:
Other countries may unilaterally grant visa-free entry to nationals of certain countries to facilitate tourism, promote business, or even to cut expenses on maintaining consular posts abroad.
Some of the considerations for a country to grant visa-free entry to another country include (but are not limited to):
To have a smaller worldwide diplomatic staff, some countries rely on other country's (or countries') judgments when issuing visas. For example, Mexico allows citizens of all countries to enter without Mexican visas if they possess a valid American visa that has already been used. Costa Rica accepts valid visas of Schengen/EU countries, Canada, Japan, South Korea, and the United States (if valid for at least three months


Life in the Fast Lane
"Life in the Fast Lane" is a song written by Joe Walsh, Glenn Frey and Don Henley, and recorded by American rock band Eagles for the band's fifth studio album "Hotel California" (1976). It was the third single released from this album, and peaked at No. 11 on the "Billboard" Hot 100.
Content.
The song tells the story of a couple who take their excessive lifestyle to the edge. On "In the Studio with Redbeard", Glenn Frey revealed that the title came to him one day when he was riding on the freeway with a drug dealer known as "The Count". Frey asked the dealer to slow down and the response was, "What do you mean? It's life in the fast lane!" In that same interview, Frey indicated that the song's central riff was played by Walsh while the band was warming up in rehearsals and Walsh was told to "keep that; it's a song". Don Henley recalled that the "song actually sprang from the opening guitar riff. One day, at rehearsal, Joe [Walsh] just busted out that crazy riff and I said 'What the hell is that? We've got to figure out to make a song out of that." Henley and Frey, the primary lyricists for the band, then wrote the lyrics for the song.
Critical reception.
"Cash Box" said that "with the influence of six-stringer Joe Walsh, the Eagles are harder and funkier than ever here." "Record World" said that it's "the album's most hard-edged rocker, dominated by a Walsh-signature guitar line." In 2016, the editors of "Rolling Stone" rated "Life in the Fast Lane" as the Eagles' eighth-greatest song. In 2017, "Billboard" ranked the song number four on their list of the 15 greatest Eagles songs, and in 2019, "Rolling Stone" ranked the song number eight on their list of the 40 greatest Eagles songs.
Personnel.
Partial credits from liner notes.
Covers.
In 2007, Swedish country and pop singer Jill Johnson recorded the song on her tenth studio album "Music Row".
The song was used as the soundtrack for the roller coaster "Eagles' Life in the Fast Lane", which opened at Hard Rock Park in May 2008.
On July 25, 2019 the rock band Hinder released their cover of the song as a non album single.
References.
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Clare Torry
British singer (born 1947)
Clare H. Torry (born 29 November 1947) is a British singer, known for performing the improvised, wordless vocals on the song "The Great Gig in the Sky" on Pink Floyd's 1973 album "The Dark Side of the Moon". She sang the theme of the 1977 film "OCE" in the same style, and also covered the Dolly Parton single "Love Is Like a Butterfly" for the opening titles of the BBC TV series "Butterflies", which ran for four series between 1978 and 1983.
Early life.
Clare Torry was born in November 1947 in Marylebone, London, to Geoffrey Napier Torry (1916–1979), who combined careers as Lieutenant-Commander in the Fleet Air Arm and Flight Lieutenant in the RAF, and his wife Dorothy W. Singer (1916–2017), who was secretary to six BBC Directors-General.
Career.
In the 1960s Torry began a career as a singer, mostly performing covers of popular songs which included session work at Abbey Road Studios. She later worked as a staff songwriter for EMI.
In January 1973, Pink Floyd were finishing work on "The Dark Side of the Moon" at Abbey Road, and a female singer was needed to add vocals to an instrumental composition by Richard Wright to be called "The Great Gig in the Sky". Engineer Alan Parsons remembered having been impressed by Torry's voice, and she was booked for a session on Sunday 21 January.
<templatestyles src="Template:Blockquote/styles.css" />"They simply said, 'Who shall we get to sing this?' And I said, 'Well, I know a great singer.' I just knew her through one album of hit cover versions she'd done – you know, the cover albums that proliferated in the early 1970s. They were always done in a day. And I was very impressed with her. There was a bit of direction given: they said, 'Sorry, we've got no words, no melody line, just a chord sequence – just see what you can do with it.' She was only there for a couple of hours. As I remember, she did two or three tracks, from which we assembled the best bits for a master version. But somewhere in the archives are the bits we didn't use, and I'm sure it would make for an interesting remix version one day." – Alan Parsons.
On 4 November 1973, Torry sang "The Great Gig in the Sky" at the Rainbow Theatre in London. She sang it with Pink Floyd again at their 1990 concert at Knebworth, and with Roger Waters at some of his 1980s solo shows. She also contributed to Waters' 1986 soundtrack "When the Wind Blows" and to his 1987 album "Radio K.A.O.S.".
Torry performed as a session singer on 1970s UK TV adverts, and as a live backing vocalist with Kevin Ayers, Olivia Newton-John, Shriekback, The Alan Parsons Project (for whom she also sang lead vocal on one track on 1979's "Eve"), Procol Harum mainman Gary Brooker, Matthew Fisher, Cerrone, Meat Loaf (a duet on the song "Nowhere Fast", and the hit "Modern Girl"), Johnny Mercer and Doctors of Madness.
She performed Dolly Parton's "Love Is Like a Butterfly" as the theme music to the 1970s Wendy Craig/Geoffrey Palmer, Carla Lane sitcom "Butterflies". The song was released as a single in 1981. Torry also released "Love for Living" in 1969, which was produced by Ronnie Scott and Robin Gibb. She sang the theme of the 1977 film "OCE" in the same style as "The Great Gig in the Sky".
In the 1970s she appeared on the French disco composer Cerrone's "Angelina", the Alan Parsons Project's "Don't Hold Back", and albums by Olivia Newton-John and Serge Gainsbourg. Her voice can be heard singing "Love to Love You Baby" (originally by Donna Summer) during the opening scene of the cult BBC "Play for Today" production of "Abigail's Party" in 1977. Torry sang backing vocals on the track "The War Song" from Culture Club's "Waking Up with the House on Fire" album in 1984, as well as on the track "Yellowstone Park" on the Tangerine Dream album "Le Parc" the following year.
Torry is also credited on the 1987 album "En Dejlig Torsdag" ("A Lovely Thursday") by the Danish pop rock band TV-2, where she sings in a fashion similar to "The Great Gig in the Sky" at the end of the tracks "Stjernen I Mit Liv" ("The Star in my Life") and "I Baronessens Seng" ("In the Bed of the Baroness").
On 20 October 2010, Torry was presented with a BASCA Gold Badge Award in recognition of her unique contribution to music.
Lawsuit.
In 2004, Torry sued Pink Floyd and EMI for songwriting royalties on the basis that her contribution to "The Great Gig in the Sky" constituted co-authorship with keyboardist Richard Wright. In 1973, as a session singer, she was paid only the standard flat fee of £30 for Sunday studio work (the equivalent of £400 in 2022). She said in 1998, "If I'd known then what I know now, I would have done something about organising copyright or publishing." In 2005, an out-of-court settlement was reached in Torry's favour, although the terms of the settlement were not disclosed. All releases after 2005 carry an additional credit for "Vocal composition by Clare Torry" in the "Great Gig in the Sky" segment of the booklet or liner notes.
Later work.
In February 2006, Torry released "Heaven in the Sky", a collection of her early pop recordings from the 1960s and 1970s. In 2011, she released a collaboration with musician and composer John Fyffe.
References.
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Better Off Dead (film)
1985 American black comedy film
Better Off Dead is a 1985 American teen black comedy film written and directed by Savage Steve Holland. It stars John Cusack, David Ogden Stiers, Diane Franklin and Kim Darby. The film was released in August 1985.
Initially met with mixed reviews on release, it has since developed a cult following for its unconventionally surreal and absurdist humor.
Plot.
In the town of Greendale, Northern California, high school student Lane Meyer's two main interests are skiing and his girlfriend of six months, Beth. Shortly before Christmas, Beth dumps him for the handsome and popular captain of the ski team, Roy Stalin.
Roy is an arrogant bully who unfairly rejects Lane at ski team tryouts. Beth also criticizes Lane's car, an old station wagon. Although Lane also owns a 1967 Camaro, he has not been able to get it running and it sits dilapitated in the driveway.
Lane lives in a suburban development with his mother Jenny, a ditzy housewife who routinely concocts creepy (and creeping) family meals; his genius little brother Badger, who never speaks but at the age of "almost 8" can build powerful lasers and attract trashy women from "How-to" books; and his lawyer father, Al, who daily tries to stop the menacing paperboy, Johnny, from breaking his garage door windows with thrown newspapers.
Furthermore, Johnny claims that the Meyers owe him two dollars for newspapers, and persistently hounds Lane, yelling "I want my two dollars!" Lane also regularly encounters two Japanese drag racers, one who only speaks in Japanese and the other who learned to speak English by listening to Howard Cosell.
Lane cannot move past Beth's rejection, so decides that death is the only way out of his misery. He makes several half-hearted attempts at suicide, which all comically fail. With the help of his best friend, Charles de Mar (who in lieu of not being able to get "real drugs" in their "bodaciously small town," constantly inhales everyday substances like Jell-O, snow, and nitrous oxide from a whipped cream can), Lane tries to ski the K-12, the highest peak in town, in hopes of getting Beth back, but wipes out.
Lane is further embarrassed when he gets fired from his humiliating fast food job at Pig Burgers in front of Roy and Beth, who are there on a date. To top it all, he increasingly begins to suffer from neurotic hallucinations owing to the mounting frustrations in his life.
As Lane attempts to either end his life or win back his ex-girlfriend, he gradually gets to know a new girl: a French foreign-exchange student named Monique, who has a crush on him. She is staying with Lane's overbearing neighbor Mrs. Smith, who continually tries to force Monique into being a girlfriend for her socially awkward son Ricky.
The Smiths are so annoying that Monique pretends she cannot speak English. She is a Los Angeles Dodgers fan, who turns out to be an excellent auto mechanic and skier. Monique both helps Lane fix his Camaro and tries to build his confidence.
When Roy insults Monique, Lane challenges him to a ski race down the K-12, with the winner to be captain of the ski team. She helps Lane prepare for the race, which he ultimately wins despite losing a ski and being pursued by Johnny. Beth rushes to embrace Lane at the finish line, but he rejects her and after besting Ricky (who attempts to keep Lane from rescuing Monique from the restraints of his mother) in a ski-pole swordfight, drives off with Monique in his Camaro.
Lane and Monique are last seen kissing on home plate at Dodger Stadium, with Johnny bicycling towards them, while in a mid-credit scene Badger launches a homemade space shuttle from his room through the roof of the house.
Cast.
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Production.
Parts of the film were shot in Alta, Brighton, and Snowbird, in Utah. The Meyers home is located at 1636 Virginia Avenue, in Glendale, CA. Across the street, at 1633 Virginia, is the home of the Smith family and French exchange student Monique Junot. Lane's high school is Hollywood High School, located at 1521 North Highland Avenue, in Los Angeles, CA. Pig Burgers was filmed at Sandy's Char Burger at 6223 Lankershim Blvd. The restaurant has since gone out of business, but the building still sports the burger signage. The exterior of the school dance sequence was shot at Anderson W. Clark Magnet High School in La Crescenta, CA. The street on which Lane is consistently challenged by the Japanese drag racers is located near the foothills of Monrovia, CA. Several other driving scenes were shot in the Los Angeles suburbs of Duarte and Sierra Madre.
The hand-drawn animation in the movie was animated by Savage Steve Holland's collaborator Bill Kopp, who would later work with him on "One Crazy Summer" (1986) and "Eek! The Cat". A dream sequence where hamburgers and fries come to life was produced in stop motion.
According to an interview with Diane Franklin on the RetroZest Podcast, actor Yano Anaya, who played one of Johnny Gasparini's paperboy gang members, also looped all of Demian Slade's dialogue as Johnny the paperboy. Anaya also played bully Grover Dill in "A Christmas Story" (1983) and young Michael Anthony in the music video for Van Halen's "Hot for Teacher" (1984).
Reception.
"Better Off Dead" was one of the few films critics Siskel & Ebert featured on their weekly television show "At the Movies" while bypassing entirely in their respective Chicago newspapers. They gave the film "two thumbs down". Bill Cosford of "The Miami Herald" wrote, ""Better Off Dead" has the body of a tired teen comedy but the soul of an inspired student film; it's the first movie in a long time to interrupt itself periodically with flights of animated fancy."
According to Holland, Cusack did not like the film and walked out of a screening during the filming of Holland's "One Crazy Summer" (in which he also starred), later confronting Holland, saying "Better Off Dead" "was the worst thing I have ever seen. I will never trust you as a director ever again, so don't speak to me." Holland claimed that Cusack felt he had been made to look foolish and that his comments "made me not care about movies anymore". However, in a 2013 Reddit "Ask Me Anything" chat, Cusack was asked if he hated filming "Better Off Dead", and responded, "No, I just thought it could have been better, but I think that about almost all my films. I have nothing against the film... Glad people love it still."
On review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds an approval rating of 77% based on 26 reviews, with an average rating of 6.90/10. The website's critical consensus reads, ""Better Off Dead" is an anarchic mix of black humor and surreal comedy anchored by John Cusack's winsome, charming performance." On Metacritic, the film received a score of 51 based on 7 reviews, indicating "mixed or average reviews".
Soundtrack.
The film's soundtrack was produced primarily by Rupert Hine.
The opening track, "With One Look (The Wildest Dream)", was produced by Hine and features Cy Curnin and Jamie West-Oram of the Fixx on lead vocals and guitars, respectively. Hine had previously worked with Curnin and West-Oram, and also contributed vocals to the song. The following track, "Arrested by You", as well as "Better Off Dub (Title Music)" and "Race the K-12 (Instrumental)", were performed solely by Hine. "Arrested by You" was covered by Dusty Springfield on her 1990 album, "Reputation".
"Dancing in Isolation" features Terri Nunn of Berlin on lead vocals. Hine produced the song and was reportedly under consideration to produce an album for Berlin.
"Come to Your Rescue" was performed by Thinkman, a group formed by, and including, Hine for the purpose of restoring his solo career without the music press knowing about it. West-Oram also provided guitar work to this song, as well as the instrumental "The Falcon Beat".
The only two tracks on the CD without Hine's involvement are "A Little Luck" and "One Way Love (Better Off Dead)". Elizabeth Daily, credited on the soundtrack as E.G. Daily, sang lead vocals on both songs and also performed them in the film during the high school dance scene.
A number of songs that appear in the film do not appear on the CD soundtrack, including Howard Jones' "Like to Get to Know You Well", Van Halen's "Everybody Wants Some!!", Neil Sedaka's "Breaking Up Is Hard to Do", Paul Simon's "Fifty Ways to Leave Your Lover", Jimi Hendrix's "Foxy Lady", Frank Sinatra singing "A Man Alone" by Rod McKuen, Hall & Oates' "She's Gone", and Muddy Waters' "Mannish Boy".
Track listing.
Credits adapted from CD liner notes.
Side one
Side two
Personnel.
Musicians
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Technical
References.
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Hotel California (album)
Hotel California is the fifth studio album by American rock band Eagles, released on December 8, 1976, by Asylum Records. Recorded by the band and produced by Bill Szymczyk at the Criteria and Record Plant studios between March and October 1976, it was the band's first album with guitarist Joe Walsh, who had replaced founding member Bernie Leadon, and the last to feature founding bassist Randy Meisner. The album cover features a photograph of the Beverly Hills Hotel, taken by David Alexander.
"Hotel California" was an immediate critical and commercial success, topping the US "Billboard" 200 chart. At the 20th Grammy Awards, the title track won Record of the Year, and "New Kid in Town" won Best Arrangement for Voices. The album was also nominated for Album of the Year but lost to Fleetwood Mac's "Rumours" (1977). Three singles were released from the album, with the title track and "New Kid in Town" topping the "Billboard" Hot 100 and "Life in the Fast Lane" reaching No. 11.
"Hotel California" is one of the best-selling albums of all time. It has been certified 26× Platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) in the US, and has sold over 32 million units worldwide, making it the band's second best-selling album after "Their Greatest Hits (1971–1975)" (1976). Ranked by various publications as one of the greatest albums of all time, it was placed at number 37 on "Rolling Stone"'s list of the "500 Greatest Albums of All Time" in 2003 and 2012, re-positioned to number 118 in the 2020 edition. A 40th anniversary special edition of "Hotel California" was released in November 2017. The band played the album in its entirety during the Hotel California 2020 Tour.
Theme.
The first song written for the album was "Hotel California", which became the theme for the album. Don Henley said of the themes of the songs in the album:
On the title "Hotel California", Henley said that "the word, 'California,' carries with it all kinds of connotations, powerful imagery, mystique, etc., that fires the imaginations of people in all corners of the globe. There's a built-in mythology that comes with that word, an American cultural mythology that has been created by both the film and the music industry." In an interview with the Dutch magazine "ZigZag" shortly before the album's release, Henley said:
Composition.
Bernie Leadon, who was the principal country influence in the band, left the band after the release of the previous album, "One of These Nights" (1975). For "Hotel California", the band made a conscious decision to move away from country rock, and wrote some songs with a more straightforward rock & roll sound, such as "Victim of Love" and "Life in the Fast Lane". Leadon was replaced by Joe Walsh who provided the opening guitar riff of "Life in the Fast Lane" that was then developed into the song. The title for "Life in the Fast Lane" was inspired by a conversation between Frey and his drug dealer during a high speed car ride.
The chord progression and basic melody of the title track, "Hotel California", was written by Don Felder. Don Henley wrote most of the lyrics, with contributions from Glenn Frey. Henley noted that the hotel had become a "literal and symbolic focal point of their lives at that time", and it became the theme of the song. Frey wanted the song to be "more cinematic", and to write it "just like it was a movie". Henley sought inspiration for the lyrics by driving out into the desert, as well as from films and theatre. Parts of the lyrics of "Hotel California" as well as the song "Wasted Time" were based on Henley's break up with his then girlfriend Loree Rodkin.
Frey, in the "Hotel California" episode of "In the Studio with Redbeard",<ref name="rb/its/E-HC"></ref> spoke about the writing of "The Last Resort". Frey said: "It was the first time that Don took it upon himself to write an epic story and we were already starting to worry about the environment… we're constantly screwing up paradise and that was the point of the song and that at some point there is going to be no more new frontiers. I mean we're putting junk, er, garbage into space now."
Recording.
The album was recorded between March and October 1976 at Criteria Studios in Miami and Record Plant Studios in Los Angeles, and produced by Bill Szymczyk. Although the band favored Los Angeles, the producer Szymczyk wanted to record in Miami as he had developed a fear of living on a fault line in Los Angeles after experiencing an earthquake, and a compromise was then struck to split the recording between both places. While the band were recording the album, Black Sabbath were recording "Technical Ecstasy" in an adjacent studio at Criteria Studios. The band was forced to stop recording on numerous occasions because Black Sabbath were too loud and the sound was coming through the wall. The last track of the album, "The Last Resort", had to be re-recorded a number of times due to noise from the next studio.
For the title track "Hotel California", after the arrangement and instrumentation had been refined, several complete takes were recorded. The best parts were then spliced together, in all 33 edits on the two‑inch master, to create the final version. In contrast, "Victim of Love" was recorded in a live session in studio apart from the lead vocal and the harmony on the choruses which were added later. Don Felder initially sang the lead vocals in the many early takes for the song, but the band felt that his efforts were not up to the required standard, and Henley then took over as the lead. Producer Szymczyk claims that the basic tracks for the entire album were recorded in complete takes, but he does not describe how individual songs were recorded (other than the aforementioned "Hotel California" and "Victim of Love").
According to Henley in a 1982 interview, the Eagles "probably peaked on "Hotel California"." Henley said: "After that, we started growing apart as collaborators and as friends."
Artwork.
The front cover artwork is a photograph of The Beverly Hills Hotel shot just before sunset by David Alexander with design and art direction by Kosh. According to Kosh, Henley wanted him to find a place that can portray the Hotel California of the album title, and "portray it with a slightly sinister edge". Three hotels were photographed, and the one with The Beverly Hills Hotel was selected as the cover. Both The photographer and Kosh shot the image 60 feet above Sunset Boulevard on top of a cherry picker. As the image was taken from an unfamiliar vantage point in fading light, most people did not initially recognize the hotel. However, when the identity of Beverly Hills Hotel was revealed, the hotel threatened legal action over the use of the image.
The rear album cover was shot in the lobby of the Lido Hotel in Hollywood. The gatefold image shows the same lobby but filled with members of the band and their friends. Henley said: "I wanted a collection of people from all walks of life, It’s people on the edge, on the fringes of society." A shadowy figure appears on the balcony above the lobby, which led to speculations over the person's identity.
Kosh designed a Hotel California logo as a neon sign which was used on the album cover and in its promotional materials. As it proved difficult to bend real neon tubings into the desired shape of the script, the neon effect of the logo was achieved with airbrush by Bob Hickson. Additional portraits of the band used in the album package and promotional materials were shot by Norman Seeff.
Release.
The album was released by Asylum Records on December 8, 1976, in vinyl, cassette and 8-track cartridge formats. It was considered for quadraphonic release in early 1977, but this idea was dropped following the demise of the quadraphonic format. On the album's 25th anniversary in 2001, it was released in a Multichannel 5.1 DVD-Audio disc. On August 17, 2011, the album was released on a hybrid SACD in Japan in The Warner Premium Sound series, containing both a stereo and a 5.1 mix.
Original vinyl pressings of "Hotel California" (Elektra/Asylum catalog no. 7E-1084) had custom picture labels of a blue Hotel California logo with a yellow background. These also had text engraved in the run-out groove of each side, continuing an in-joke trend the band had started with their third album "On the Border". The text reads: Side one: "Is It 6 O'Clock Yet?"; Side two: "V.O.L. Is Five-Piece Live", indicating that the song "Victim of Love" was recorded in a live session in studio, with no overdubbing. Joe Walsh and Glenn Frey confirm this on the inner booklet of "The Very Best Of". This only referred to the instrumental track, however; the lead vocal and harmony for the chorus were added later. This was in response to those who criticized the Eagles' practice of copious overdubbing of instruments and that they were too clinical and soulless in the studio. They wanted to demonstrate that they could play together without overdubs if they wanted to.
A 40th anniversary deluxe edition was released on November 24, 2017. The set includes the original remastered album, and a second CD that features 10 live tracks from the concert at The Forum, recorded in October 1976 two months before the original release of the album. This bonus CD was also issued as a stand-alone vinyl LP in 2021.
Critical reception.
"Hotel California" was met with widespread critical acclaim. "Village Voice" critic Robert Christgau felt it was their "most substantial if not their most enjoyable LP", while Charley Walters of "Rolling Stone" felt it showcased "both the best and worst tendencies of Los Angeles-situated rock". Both critics picked up on the album's California themes – Christgau remarking that while it may in places be "pretentious and condescending" and that "Don Henley is incapable of conveying a mental state as complex as self-criticism", the band couldn't have written the songs on side one "without caring about their California theme down deep"; Walters in contrast felt the "lyrics present a convincing and unflattering portrait of the milieu itself", and that Don Henley's vocals express well "the weary disgust of a victim (or observer) of the region's luxurious excess". "Billboard" gave the album high praise: "The casually beautiful, quietly-intense multileveled vocal harmonies and brilliant original songs that meld solid emotional words with lovely melody lines are all back in force, keeping the Eagles at the acme of acoustic electric soft rock." It noted that, even though the album did not try out any new departure other than the "Procol Harum-type" title track, "the album proves that there's a lot more left to explore profitably and artistically in the L.A. countryish-rock style."
Retrospective reviews have also been positive. Robert Hilburn of the "Los Angeles Times", writing after the band broke up, called the album "a legitimate rock masterpiece", in which the band "examined their recurring theme about the American Dream with more precision, power and daring than ever in such stark, uncompromising songs as "Hotel California" and "The Last Resort"." William Ruhlmann from AllMusic later said ""Hotel California" unveiled what seemed almost like a whole new band. It was a band that could be bombastic, but also one that made music worthy of the later tag of 'classic rock', music appropriate for the arenas and stadiums the band was playing." Steve Holtje, writing for "CultureCatch" in 2012, felt that even though "an awful lot of the album is snarky whining from co-leaders Don Henley and Glenn Frey, two guys who didn't really seem like they had that much they could legitimately complain about", in the final analysis ""Hotel California" and the underrated concept album "Desperado" stand as the group's greatest statements".
"Ultimate Classic Rock" critic Sterling Whitaker rated both "Wasted Time" and "The Last Resort" as being among the Eagles' 10 most underrated songs.
Accolades.
"Hotel California" was the Eagles' sixth album (including "Their Greatest Hits (1971–1975)"), and fifth of original material. It became a critical and commercial success. In a poll of rock critics and DJs in 1987, it was ranked 48 out of 100. In a public poll for the 1994 edition of "All Time Top 1000 Albums", it was voted number 107, and then number 67 in the 2000 edition. In 2001, the TV network VH1 placed "Hotel California" at number 38 on their 100 Greatest Albums of All Time list. "Hotel California" was ranked 13th in a 2005 survey held by British television's Channel 4 to determine the 100 greatest albums of all time. In 2003, the album was ranked number 37 on "Rolling Stone" magazine's list of the 500 greatest albums of all time, maintaining the rating in a 2012 revised list, dropping to number 118 in the 2020 reboot of the list. The album also was placed at the 99th spot on Apple Music's 100 Best Albums list in 2024.
The song "Hotel California" was ranked number 49 on "Rolling Stone"'s list of "The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time" in 2004. It maintained the ranking in 2010, and was re-ranked at number 311 in 2021.
Awards and nominations.
The album and its tracks were nominated for five Grammy awards in 1978, winning two; Record of the Year for the title track and Best Arrangement for Voices for "New Kid in Town". However, the band's manager Irving Azoff refused requests by the ceremony's producer for the band to attend or perform at the ceremony unless a win was guaranteed. The band therefore did not appear at the ceremony to collect their awards. Henley later said: "The whole idea of a contest to see who is 'best' just doesn't appeal to us."
Commercial performance.
The album first entered the US "Billboard" 200 at number four, reaching number one in its fourth week in January 1977. It topped the chart for eight weeks (non-consecutively), and it was certified platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) in a week of release. In its first year of release it sold nearly 6 million copies in the United States, and by July 1978 it has sold 9.5 million copies worldwide (7 million in the US and 2.5 million elsewhere internationally). On March 20, 2001, the album was certified 16× platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America, denoting shipment of 16 million in the United States, and had sold over 17 million copies in the US by 2013. Worldwide the album has sold 32 million copies. On August 20, 2018, the album was certified 26× platinum by the RIAA for 26 million units consumed in the United States under the new system that tallies album and digital track sales as well as streams.
The album produced two number one hit singles on the US "Billboard" Hot 100: "New Kid in Town", on February 26, 1977, and "Hotel California" on May 7, 1977.
Personnel.
Adapted from AllMusic and album liner notes.
Eagles
Production
Allegedly stolen lyric sheets.
In July 2022, three men, all involved in rare book and memorabilia dealing, were indicted by a Manhattan, New York City, grand jury on felony charges of conspiracy and possession of stolen property; one was further charged with hindering prosecution. Prosecutors alleged that they had forged provenance documents attempting to demonstrate that they were the lawful owners of some of Frey and Henley's original drafts of lyrics for songs on the album, including "Hotel California" and "Life in the Fast Lane" and "New Kid in Town", when they in fact knew those materials, around a hundred handwritten pages on yellow notebook paper estimated to be worth $1 million in total, to have been stolen. Their plot had come to light after, having sold Henley some of the documents for $8,500 in 2012, they returned to Henley offering to sell him some more after listing them at Sotheby's four years later; he then filed a complaint with the New York County district attorney's office. All three protested their innocence through their attorneys.
The three were alleged to have acquired the documents from Ed Sanders, a journalist who had been hired to write a biography of the band around the time of "Hotel California". Sanders did not finish the work until after the band had broken up and the project was eventually canceled. He is not charged or named in the indictment, but in a news release announcing it, the D.A.'s office described the papers as "originally stolen in the late 1970s by an author who had been hired to write a biography of the band." The indictment also quotes an "Individual 1" as telling one of the indicted men in an email that he "was staying at Henley's place in Malibu and had total access to his boxes of stuff, and there was a lot, and I compiled a box of files I wanted and his assistant mailed them to me." "The Los Angeles Times" found also that an archived version of the 2016 Sotheby's listing online identified Sanders as the then-owner.
Charts.
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