New Digital European Union Entry Systems to be Implemented from October 2025

Individual EU member states may choose to implement at any time between those dates, so Handsam are advising clients to keep a very close eye on the requirements for entering the specific country(s) their trips are visiting.

Please note that, in July 2025, the official EES website was edited to remove the mention of precise start dates for the progressive start or full implementation of the EES, though wording remained that the start was 'due' in October 2025.

What is the EES?

EES (EU Entry/Exit system) is designed as a quick check that travellers need to pass before entering 29 member states of the European Union (EU)/Schengen Area. The system aims to make border crossings smoother while keeping everyone safe. Its main goals are:

1. Enhancing security within the Schengen Area

2. Preventing illegal migration

3. Protecting public health

4. Reducing delays at borders

The EU Entry/Exit system (EES) will require, once fully implemented, anyone who is not an EU resident and does not require a visa entering the EU's Schengen Area (including at UK checkpoints such as Dover, Folkestone and St Pancras) to have a biometric record created. This will mean a facial image and a right-hand fingerprint scan are needed.

Please note that as part of implementation, the ‘phased start’ rules say that EES can be run without biometrics in the first 60 days as manual passport stamping will continue during phasing-in, but this is down to local decision-making. Eventually, though, EES will track the 90/180 days right to remain rule for non-EU residents.

Six months after EES is fully in place, an online authorisation process to enter the Schengen area will also start, called ETIAS.

What is ETIAS?

ETIAS (European Travel Information and Authorisation System) will be needed by the same people, even for short visits. But please note this is a pre-travel system, so will need to be included in trip planning arrangements for all relevant trips. It is likely to involve a €20 per-person fee for first time registration (which some people will already have) – the price is under review. This fee has almost tripled from original plans.

Currently, the EU reports that ETIAS will only become 100% mandatory from October 2026, but again Handsam is advising clients to regularly check the scenario as this has been liable to significant change over the past two years.

See: ETIAS Timeline for British Travellers | ETIAS UK

The long-awaited new EU Entry/Exit system (EES) and the European Travel Information and Authorisation System (ETIAS) for entering the EU/Schengen Zone zone are due to be coming on stream over a period from 12 October 2025 to 10 April 2026.

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