Rome Colosseum – New border controls planned for travellers to Europe in November
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Europe is set to introduce a new biometric passport system in November 2024, followed by new travel authorizations for many visitors six months later. Here's what travelers need to know.
The new European Entry-Exit System (EES) is scheduled to go live in November 2024
EU Home Affairs Commissioner Ylva Johansson confirmed that the new entry and exit system will be introduced on Sunday 10 November 2024, with the new process in the final testing phase.
EES is a new system that uses biometric data to allow short-term visa holders and visa-exempt travellers to cross Schengen borders. As travellers pass through electronic gates, their fingerprints and faces are scanned.
This is meant to replace the passport stamps currently used by European countries, but the stamps take time to issue and countries cannot keep track of overstayers – people who stay longer than their permitted stay.
The system registers the person's name, type of travel document, biometric data (fingerprints and photographed facial images), and dates and places of entry and exit.
The European Commission has called the EES “the most advanced border control system in the world” and it ensures that travellers do not stay in the Schengen area for more than 90 days in any 180-day period.
“The entry-exit system will allow us to know exactly who enters Schengen countries on a foreign passport and whether they stay too long, thereby combating illegal immigration. And biometrics, photographs and fingerprints will make it harder for criminals, terrorists or Russian spies to use fake passports,” Johansson told reporters.
The Schengen Area includes 29 countries, including 25 of the 27 EU member states and the European Free Trade Association members (Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway and Switzerland). The area covers an area of 4 million square kilometres and has a population of approximately 420 million people, allowing free movement within the area. Currently, there are two EU member states that are not part of the Schengen Area: Ireland and Cyprus.
The EES (Entrance/Exit System) was originally scheduled for introduction in 2020, but was postponed due to technical issues, and its introduction has now been postponed again for the Paris Olympics.
USA Today suggests that American travelers should allow a bit more time for connecting flights at European airports once the new system is in place.
European ETIAS travel authorization scheduled to launch in 2025
ETIAS (European Travel Information and Authorization System) requires visitors traveling on visa-free passports to apply for authorization before arriving in any of the participating European countries.
According to the EU website, 1.4 billion people from over 60 visa-exempt countries will need travel authorization to enter 30 European countries for short stays. These travelers come from countries such as Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, Japan, New Zealand, the United States, the United Kingdom and the United Arab Emirates.
The EU Home Affairs Commissioner confirmed that the ETIAS will launch around six months after the EES, but no specific date has been set.
The system works in much the same way as the US ESTA system. Travelers who do not hold a US passport must pay a $7 registration fee before entering Europe. Travelers under 18 and over 70 are exempt from the registration fee. Entry rights are valid for three years, after which they must apply again.
The list of European countries that require an ETIAS authorization can be found here.
While approval is quick and easy, CNTraveler reports that travelers must first apply for ETIAS at least 96 hours before their flight departure.
