More travel red tape for Europe trips: Get ready for Etias and EES

After the UK voted to leave the European Union and the government negotiated for British travellers to become “third-country nationals subject to a range of restrictions, British passport holders must now have their travel documents inspected and stamped

The next steps, which are likely to be introduced in autumn 2024, will involve more red tape. The good news: passport stamping will end. The bad news: every traveller must be fingerprinted and provide a facial biometric.

The European Union is planning to introduce an “Entry/Exit System” (EES) that will record the movements of non-EU visitors. Shortly afterwards – in mid 2025, according the latest plan – prospective UK visitors to the Schengen area will have to apply online for permission to enter.

The Schengen area comprises most of the 27 remaining members of the European Union (but not Bulgaria, Cyprus, Ireland or Romania), plus Iceland, Norway, Switzerland and Liechtenstein.

The Electronic Travel Information and Authorisation System (Etias) is the next step in tightening frontier controls. It depends upon EES being fully functional and is due to appear in mid-2025.