Cook Islands, Tokelau and Niue entry requirements for British passport holders (2026): visa and passport validity
Read the official text below. The official page gives different rules for different territories. We quote it word for word and do not summarise it.
Visa (FCDO): Read the official visa text below
Official source: GOV.UK – Cook Islands, Tokelau and Niue travel advice, Entry requirements (FCDO) · page last updated 10 December 2025 · checked on 17 October 2026
What the UK Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO) says about visas and passport validity for British travellers to Cook Islands, Tokelau and Niue, quoted word for word.
Other passports: Canadian passport (Cook Islands) · Canadian passport (Niue) · Canadian passport (Tokelau) · Australian passport (Cook Islands) · Australian passport (Niue) · Italian citizens: documenti per italiani (Isole Cook) · Italian citizens: documenti per italiani (Niue)
Driving in the Cook Islands, do you need an international driving permit? Australian licence
Do I need a visa for Cook Islands, Tokelau and Niue with a British passport?
We quote the FCDO text word for word and do not summarise it: its first sentence has conditions or a wording we do not turn into a one-line answer.
Cook Islands
You can visit the Cook Islands without a visa for up to 31 days. If you’re staying longer, you may need a visa or entry on arrival permit. See visitor information from the Cook Islands government. You can get monthly Cook Islands visa extensions for a total stay of 5 months. You must apply at least 2 weeks before your visa or permit expires.
More from the FCDO visa section (extensions, border checks and other cases)
Tokelau
To visit Tokelau, you must get permission from the Tokelau council (‘Taupulega’) before you travel and buy boat tickets from the Tokelau office in Samoa. See visitor information from the Tokelau government and travel advice for Samoa.
Niue
You can visit Niue without a visa for up to 30 days. If you’re staying longer, you may need visa. Email Niue’s immigration department for information: immigration.niue@mail.gov.nu
Sea travel from the Cook Islands
If you plan to join a tourist boat, yacht or other sea-going vessel to travel from the Cook Islands, you must apply for permission to enter from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Immigration.
Checks at border control
To enter the Cook Islands or Niue, you must have:
- a ticket for onward or return travel
- a visa for the next country you’re travelling to
- proof of accommodation during your stay in the Cook Islands or Niue
To enter Tokelau, contact the Tokelau government office for their requirements.
Official source: GOV.UK – Cook Islands, Tokelau and Niue travel advice, Entry requirements (FCDO), section “Visa requirements” · page last updated 10 December 2025 · checked on 17 October 2026
Passport validity: official text “Passport validity requirements”
Cook Islands
Your passport must have an ‘expiry date’ at least 6 months after the date you plan to leave the Cook Islands and have at least 2 blank pages.
Tokelau
To enter Tokelau, your passport must meet the validity requirements for travel to Samoa – see travel advice for Samoa. All travel to Tokelau is by ship from Apia, Samoa. You can email the Tokelau Apia Liaison Office: contact@tokelaunso.tk
Niue
Your passport must have an ‘expiry date’ at least 3 months after the date you plan to leave the Cook Islands and have at least 2 blank pages.
Official source: GOV.UK – Cook Islands, Tokelau and Niue travel advice, Entry requirements (FCDO) · page last updated 10 December 2025 · checked on 17 October 2026
No automatic check for this destination. The official text above is not a validity period we turn into a date calculation. Read it, and check with your airline or carrier.
For British passport holders only. These are the rules published by the UK government (FCDO) for British citizens. If you hold another passport, check your own government's advice. The airline and the border officials of the destination decide whether you can travel or enter: this site is information, not legal advice.
Recent FCDO updates to the entry requirements
- 10 December 2025: “New information about dual nationals returning to the UK (‘Entry requirements’ page).”
- 26 June 2023: “Entry requirements: Removal of vaccination requirements & quarantine isolation upon arrival. LGBT travellers: Cook Islands parliament has decriminalised same-sex relations (‘Entry requirements’ and ‘Local laws and customs’ pages)”
- 14 September 2022: “Addition to entry requirements, acceptance for entry, departure and transit on a UK emergency travel document (‘Entry requirements’ page).”
- 19 May 2022: “Re-published following editorial review of the 'Entry requirements' page.”
- 27 January 2021: “Updated information on transit via New Zealand ('Entry requirements' page)”
Read the full FCDO travel advice for Cook Islands, Tokelau and Niue (safety, visas, health) before you travel.
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