Of course. Please... you can hardly be surprised.

I won't argue based on the point of view of the Australian (which to Australian, it is a visa).

But I will argue that based on the point of view of the entire world, ETA does not (and should not) consider as a form of visa. The reasons?

1. Reciprocity

If ETA/eVisitor is a "true" form of visa, it will almost certain that Australian Passport will be the world's worst passport to have (as every single country will require a visa).

2. Procedure and fee involved

A "true" visa costs hundred of dollars. And interviews are usually required.

Neither ETA/eVisitor requires interviews. Also, denied of ETA/eVisitor does not mean you are denied entry to Australia for sure as you can go through an ordinary visa process (which is same as the U.S.'s ESTA).

Doesn't matter what you think, the ETA is Visa and has been defined as the travel requirement.

ESTA is not a Visa. You still need a Visa beyond ESTA to enter the USA. VWP for most countries, but it's still a Visa issued when you arrive.

If you don't have an ETA, the airline should not let you board the plane, excluding those exempt (Australian's etc) That's pretty much Denied Entry to me unless you have ETA or another visa.

Countless Visa's don't require an interview, fill out the form, post off your passport/money and it comes back with a Visa.

Back to the original subject.

Anyone know if UA also stopped providing the visa for free to First Class passengers?

The Rules at UA on "Visas" to Australia....it just depends who you talk to....
 

So, my partner and I are traveling on 2 F awards to SYD in February. I decided to call yesterday to get our "visas" (ETAs) taken care of. Two findings from the Premier agent I spoke with:

1. I was told there is no charge for these "visas" for 1Ks. (In hindsight, I should have probed if the lack of a charge was really because of 1K status or because the seats were in F).
2. Anyway, after 15 minutes on the phone and providing all of our passport details, I wasn't able to get the visas issued because "United's link to the Australian Visa site doesn't work on weekends". (Seriously, I'm just repeating what I was told!)

So, I called back today for the same purpose. The agent tells me the site seems to be accepting information (although it did that yesterday up to a point), but advises me up front that there will be a $20 fee. I tell her what I was told yesterday and also of my past experience from early 2011 (i.e., that they were free). She insists "no", but I insist she ask a supervisor. Sure enough she comes back and says that since I'm a 1K and my partner is 1K due to my 2MM status that there will be no $20 processing fees.

She said to "stay tuned" and that "sometime soon you'll receive an email confirmation". Hmmm. Who knows if our visas are really handled at this point, who knows if I'll see a mystery $40 charge on my CC on file, and who knows even now what the rule really is!

As usual, my approach to UA remains: If you don't like the answer or think/know the answer is wrong, just call back. Chances are you'll eventually find a knowledgeable agent or someone who will oblige your request (kind of like the cool swapping out of 30K miles for a GPU yesterday).

Checking my credit card statement I see a charge for $25 US for an electronic visa for Australia. I thought the charge was only $20. Is it worth disputing with UA over $5?

$20 AUD is about $18.25 USD right now...foreign transaction fee etc bumping it up to $25 USD?

No foreign transaction fee with Chase Sapphire. I think UA took $5 from me. Is it worth disputing?

While the cost in the past was $20, have you checked to see if it has changed? Have you called?

Is multiple posts and time on the phone worth the $5 to you?

Last month UA charged me $25 for an Australian electronic visa instead of $20. I didn't notice it until I looked at my credit card statement. When I called UA to see if the fee changed, I was told it was still $20.

Then she said starting November 1, 2014 UA will no longer issue electronic visa and that pax will have to get the visas themselves from the Australian Government web site. Can anyone confirm this?