Travellers jetting off to 29 destinations from November will need to log their fingerprint to enter, following the announcement of a new registration system.
The Entry/Exit System – or EES – is set to be rolled out across the EU as officials seeks to strengthen border security. A statement from the UK Government indicates that most non-EU citizens will need to create a ‘digital record’ before they can enter any country within this system.
This involves registering biometric details, including fingerprints and having a photo taken upon entering the Schengen area. All 25 EU countries, excluding Cyprus and Ireland, are encompassed in this, in addition to four non-EU countries. This includes Norway, Iceland, Switzerland and Lichtenstein, according to Parliament.
In a statement released yesterday, the UK Government added: “British travellers will need to do this on their first visit to the EU after EES is introduced.
“Their record will be checked on point of entry into the Schengen area verifying either their fingerprint or photograph.” Although the EU has not yet confirmed a specific date for its introduction, it’s said the EES ‘should only take a few minutes’ for travellers to do.
The EES system is set to replace the current method of manually stamping passports whenever someone enters an EU country. Its aim is to automate this process to ensure people ‘do not overstay’ and to tackle illegal migration.
This change is part of a larger security initiative within the EU, which will introduce another new system known as the ‘European Travel Information and Authorisation System’ (ETIAS) by 2025.
The ETIAS will require anyone travelling to the Schengen area to submit personal information before their journey. A seven euro fee will also be required to ‘apply for authorisation to travel’ prior to a journey.
Aside from airports, the EES system will be implemented at certain ports in the South of England where French Border Force conducts immigration checks. This includes Dover, the Eurotunnel and St Pancras.
Holidaymakers are being advised to check with their travel operator if the EES could potentially impact their journey before heading to these ports.
However, the UK Government has stated that it’s been working with the EU to ensure the EES system can ‘take place as smoothly as possible’.
For instance, it claimed the ‘Eurotunnel will have over 100 kiosks’ and EES checks should add ‘just over five minutes to journey times’. Meanwhile, the Port of Dover will have 24 kiosks and the Eurostar will have almost 50.
The Government added: “If British travellers decide to visit a country in the Schengen area again within a three-year period of creating their digital record, they will only need to provide either their fingerprint or photograph at the border on entry and exit.
“EES will bolster border security for both the EU and their neighbouring countries.”
Is your holiday destination affected by EES? Check our full list of countries below:
- Austria
- Belgium
- Bulgaria
- Croatia
- Czech Republic
- Denmark
- Estonia
- Finland
- France
- Germany
- Greece
- Hungary
- Italy
- Latvia
- Lithuania
- Luxembourg
- Malta
- Netherlands
- Poland
- Portugal
- Romania
- Slovakia
- Slovenia
- Spain
- Swede
- Norway
- Iceland
- Switzerland
- Lichtenstein