When Are Airport Liquid Rules Changing?

Everyone loves a holiday, but nobody enjoys packing. And filling cases for shorter trips is almost made worse by trying to decant our entire life's worth of beauty products into 100ml bottles to fit into a minuscule plastic sandwich bag to scan through airport security. In short, it's a painful process.

But soon, we won't be forced to choose between bringing along our trusty lip gloss, after-sun cream, or high SPF sprays (because nobody has time for sun damage), as the 100ml liquid limit in airports is set to change.

These rules, which came into play in November 2006 following a foiled terrorist attack foiled which involved explosives in liquids, has meant that all liquids, including holiday essentials like toothpaste, sun cream, and shampoo, have to be less than 100ml in volume and must fit in one singular clear plastic bag if travelling with carry-on luggage. Meanwhile, the tiny bag of liquids, and electrical items like tablets and laptops must be removed from hand luggage for scanning to take into the hold.

But thanks to new security scanning improvements, the UK government announced in Dec. 2022 that rules on airport security for liquids and items like laptops will be axed in 2024. These new changes mean that 100ml limits will be changing to allow 2 litre liquids, and also means that we won't need to faff about in line by removing our electrical items from our bags at airport security.

Mark June 2024 in your calendars, fellow holidaygoers! The government has set a deadline for most UK airports to move over the new changes by installing new state-of-the-art 3D scanners which show detailed scans of bags. London City Airport has already made the swap and is leading the way with the new changes, which came into effect on 8 March 2023, with more to follow suit.

Until then, be sure to check the details with the airport you're travelling to (and from), as the new changes will be slowly rolled out across the country within the next two years. Happy travels!