British travellers face biometric checks for visits to Europe from 10 April, the date by which all Schengen area countries are due to have introduced new EU border rules.
The Entry/Exit System (EES) started to be rolled out last October and is used to record short visits to the Schengen area by non-EU travellers. It involves passport officers or self-service scanners taking a photo of the face and/or scan of the fingerprints of each non-EU traveller visiting the area.
This data is taken when a traveller is first registered for EES, after which fingerprints and photographs will be verified on entry and exit. The system replaces the stamping of passports and will record the date that a traveller arrives and leaves the Schengen area. The EES system applies to adults and children aged 12 and over; under-12s will not have their fingerprints taken.
People have faced hours’-long queues at some airports in Europe in recent months due to EES checks, where IT and staffing issues have been blamed. The system has not yet been implemented for tourists in vehicles at Dover, and EES enrolments are being completed manually at St Pancras International for Eurostar passengers.
No date has been given for EES checks to begin for vehicle passengers. Biometric checks will not begin at the French border controls at Folkestone and Calais for car passengers on 10 April.
Border Force will continue to stamp passports. It has not been confirmed when checks will begin for car passengers.
Here’s how the system works and what it means for your holidays.
What is the Entry/Exit System?
EES records when non-EU passport-holders enter and exit the Schengen area, and it holds data including fingerprints, photographs and details of arrival and departure. An EES biometric record will be valid for three years. It is being used by 25 of the 27 EU countries, plus the four non-EU countries in Schengen – Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway and Switzerland. It will not be used for visits to Ireland or Cyprus, as neither are in Schengen.
It applies to non-EU nationals with a short-stay visa and non-EU nationals who do not need a visa for visits to the Schengen area of up to 90 days in any 180-day period. This includes most UK passport holders. It is replacing passport stamping, and the aim is to increase border security and to make border checks more efficient.
What does it mean for my holiday?
Airports
It does not require you to prepare anything in advance. However, the gradual roll-out since October has regularly led to queues of up to two hours at EU airports’ passport control, according to the Airports Council International (ACI). The organisation, which represents more than 600 airports in Europe, has said passport queues could be four hours or more over summer unless problems are fixed.
Airports in France, Germany, Greece, Italy, Portugal and Spain were “especially impacted”.
Long queues have formed despite border control authorities using the partial or full suspension of EES processes during peak travel time. From 10 April, affected countries will not be able to fully suspend EES to mitigate queues.
Eurotunnel, ferries and Eurostar
There are juxtaposed French border controls at UK ports, including Calais and Folkestone for Eurotunnel, and Dover and St Pancras International for Eurostar. EES checks take place in the UK by Police aux Frontières (PAF). But due to technical difficulties, EES will not be fully operational at any of these ports on 10 April.
At Eurotunnel terminals in Folkestone and Calais, PAF will begin creating EES files for non-EU citizens, but it will not collect biometric data from car passengers and passports will still be stamped. EES checks began in October for coach passengers and lorry drivers.
EES has not been implemented for car passengers at Dover. Checks are in place for coach passengers, foot passengers and lorry drivers.
Cruise passengers who sail from the UK will not be subject to EES checks. They will be subject to EES checks if they fly to the Schengen area to board their cruise and/or fly back from a Schengen area country to the UK.
Can I register for EES before travel?
There is a “travel to Europe” mobile app for non-EU travellers to pre-register passport data and photos before travelling and on which they can fill out an entry conditions questionnaire. Travellers will be able to register their data within the 72 hours prior to entering or leaving a European country with EES. However, only Sweden is using the app fully. Portugal is using it for the entry questionnaire. Frontex, the agency overseeing the app, has said that pilots of the app are “on the horizon” for other countries.
What questions might border officials ask?
Since the end of the Brexit transition period, EU border security officers can ask UK passport holders for details about their trip – such as why they are travelling, proof of insurance, a return ticket and that they have enough money to cover their trip – as was already the case for other non-EU nationals. However, it is not a legal requirement for passengers to show their return ticket, and, in practice, UK passengers have not been asked to prove their funds.
What is Etias?
The European Travel Information and Authorisation System (Etias) is effectively a visa waiver. Travellers from non-EU, visa-exempt countries, including the UK, will need to have an Etias to visit any of 30 European countries for a short stay. It is set to be introduced from the last quarter of 2026.
Etias will cost €20 (£17.40), although travellers under 18 or over 70 will be exempt from the payment. Applications will be made online with most processed in minutes. An Etias will be valid for three years or until the passport used in an application expires – whichever comes first.
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