EU Entry/Exit System (EES) and ETIAS: What Travellers Need to Know

The EU's Entry/Exit System replaces passport stamps with a digital record, and the European Commission says it has been fully operational since 10 April 2026. ETIAS, the separate pre-travel authorisation, is not in operation and the Commission has not published a start date.

Last verified: 2026-10-02

The short version

EES is live. Non-EU nationals on short stays are registered at external Schengen borders: face image, fingerprints and passport data.
ETIAS is not live. You cannot apply yet. The official EU page says no applications are being collected and that the start date will be announced several months before launch.
No action needed in advance for EES. You register when you first cross, so allow extra time that day.

What the Entry/Exit System is

EES is a digital border register. It records entries, exits and refusals of entry for non-EU nationals coming for a short stay, and replaces manual passport stamping. It collects a facial image, fingerprints and personal data from your travel document. It started in a progressive roll-out on 12 October 2025 and, according to the European Commission, became fully operational in 29 European countries on 10 April 2026.

The Commission reports more than 45 million border crossings registered during the roll-out, 24,000 refusals of entry and over 600 people identified as posing a security risk. The system also automates detection of people who overstay, which means the 90-days-in-180 rule is now tracked for you rather than counted from stamps.

Who is affected

EES applies to non-EU nationals travelling to the Schengen countries for a short stay. EU citizens are not the target group. Rules for particular categories, such as residence-permit holders or long-stay visa holders, and for fingerprint exemptions are set out on the official EU pages, so check them for your situation.

Check theofficial EU EES pagefor the current list of participating countries and your category.

What happens at the border

First crossing: a border officer or a self-service kiosk, where one is provided, captures your passport data, face image and fingerprints, and creates your EES file.
Later crossings: your identity is checked against the stored record and the entry or exit is logged.
On exit: the system records your departure, so no stamp is added and your remaining days are calculated automatically.
Refusals: if you are refused entry, that is also recorded.

Queue tips

These are RouteAtlas practical suggestions, not official guidance. Border processing times vary by airport, season and time of day.

Allow extra time on your first arrival, especially at busy airports and in summer or school-holiday peaks.
Have your passport, return or onward ticket and accommodation details ready in your hand before the booth.
Remove hats and glasses that obscure the face, and keep fingers clean and dry for the scanner.
Build longer connections when a Schengen entry is part of the journey, and avoid very tight onward transfers.
If you travel as a family, stay together so staff can process you in order.
Check the airport or airline notices a few days before departure for any local arrangements.

ETIAS: not started, no official date

ETIAS is an online travel authorisation for visa-exempt travellers to 30 European countries, separate from EES. The official ETIAS information page and the European Commission's ETIAS page currently state that ETIAS “is currently not in operation and no applications for travel authorisations are collected at this point” and that the EU “will inform about the specific date for the start of ETIAS several months prior to its launch”. Earlier Commission pages (January and April 2026) said ETIAS was scheduled for the last quarter of 2026; that wording no longer appears on the current page, and the Commission has published no replacement date and no 2027 target that we could find. Press reports in July 2026 (Financial Times, via AFAR) say eu-LISA considers a 2026 launch unfeasible and that a 2027 launch is expected; we treat that as unconfirmed.

Fee: €20 per applicant (raised from €7; Commission announcement of 17 July 2025). The fee takes effect when ETIAS is operational. Applicants under 18 and over 70 are exempt from the fee.
Validity: three years or until your passport expires, whichever comes first, for short stays of up to 90 days in any 180.
What to do now: nothing. Apply only through the official ETIAS website or mobile app once it opens; beware of lookalike sites that charge extra.

Because the start date has moved, check theofficial ETIAS pagebefore you travel.

RouteAtlas guides for Schengen destinations

These guides cover destinations where you will cross a Schengen external border or move within the zone. See also our Italy visa page.

Sources

The Commission has not announced an ETIAS delay or a 2027 date that we could find; the 2027 expectation comes only from press coverage. The earlier last-quarter-2026 target appears on Commission pages dated before July 2026. Status checked against the Commission page on 2 October 2026. See our editorial policy.