New EU passport rules

The European Union’s new digital border checks are now live, and some travelers are facing new document rules at the border. (home-affairs.ec.europa.eu) The biggest change for most non-European visitors started on April 10, 2026, when the Entry/Exit System became fully operational across 29 countries using the Schengen border system. It replaces passport stamps with a digital record of each short-stay entry and exit. (home-affairs.ec.europa.eu) Under the system, border authorities record a traveler’s name, passport details, facial image, fingerprints, and the date and place of entry or exit. It applies to non-European Union nationals entering for short stays of up to 90 days in any 180-day period. (home-affairs.ec.europa.eu; consilium.europa.eu) The European External Action Service said travelers do not need to complete a separate authorization before travel for Entry/Exit System checks. France’s foreign ministry said the separate European Travel Information and Authorisation System, known as ETIAS, is expected only in the last quarter of 2026. (eeas.europa.eu; diplomatie.gouv.fr) For first-time travelers after the rollout, officers may take a face photo and scan fingerprints at the border instead of stamping the passport. The EU’s travel portal says that information is stored in a digital file for later crossings. (travel-europe.europa.eu; consilium.europa.eu) A separate rule change hit pet owners on April 22, 2026. The UK government said Great Britain residents taking dogs, cats, or ferrets into the EU should no longer use older EU pet passports for entry and should get an Animal Health Certificate instead. (gov.uk) Defra and the Animal and Plant Health Agency said EU pet passports may now be issued only to people whose main home is in the EU. Passports issued to Great Britain residents before April 22, 2026, “may no longer be valid” for entry into the bloc. (gov.uk) The new Animal Health Certificate is still single-use for each trip from Great Britain to the EU, but the UK says it now lasts up to six months for onward travel inside the EU and for re-entry into Great Britain, as long as rabies vaccinations stay valid. If the owner is not traveling with the animal, the pet must travel within five days and the accompanying person must carry written permission. (gov.uk) The UK also said the non-commercial limit is now five pets per private vehicle, rather than five per person. Individual EU member states can still set their own entry requirements, so travelers are being told to check the destination country’s rules before departure. (gov.uk) The practical change is simple: people heading to Europe now need to separate three questions before they travel — whether the border will collect biometric data, whether ETIAS is in force yet, and whether pets need a fresh health certificate. As of Thursday, April 23, 2026, the first and third changes are already in effect; ETIAS is not. (home-affairs.ec.europa.eu; diplomatie.gouv.fr; gov.uk)