Greece eases UK entry

Greece is waiving Entry/Exit System biometric registration for British passport holders at its border crossings, easing arrivals for UK holidaymakers from April 10. (travelweekly.co.uk) The European Union’s Entry/Exit System became fully operational on April 10, 2026, replacing passport stamps with digital records for non-European Union visitors on short stays. Under the standard system, travelers’ fingerprints, facial image and passport data are recorded. (home-affairs.ec.europa.eu) The European Commission says the system applies across 29 countries using it, including Greece, and is meant to detect overstays and identity fraud at the bloc’s external borders. The system started a phased rollout on October 12, 2025 before becoming mandatory in full this month. (home-affairs.ec.europa.eu) For British travelers, the baseline rule has been simple: a first Schengen entry could mean fingerprints and a photo at the airport or port, with longer waits at busy borders. The U.K. government says there is no pre-registration and no fee, but warns the checks can add time. (gov.uk) Greece’s own embassy guidance published on April 10 said first-time short-stay visitors to Schengen countries, including Greece, would need to give fingerprints and a photograph, with the data stored for three years. That makes the new U.K.-specific carveout a departure from the general rule Greece had been explaining days earlier. (mfa.gr) Travel Weekly reported that a Greek government statement and embassy posts late on April 17 said British passport holders were exempt from biometric registration at Greek border crossing points. The report said the exemption was framed as an update for U.K. travelers to Greece. (travelweekly.co.uk) Simon Calder of The Independent reported that Eleni Skarveli, director of the Greek National Tourism Organisation in the U.K., said the change would deliver “a smoother and more efficient arrival experience” and reduce waiting times and airport congestion. Calder wrote that the issue was especially acute at smaller Greek island airports handling heavy summer traffic from Britain. (independent.co.uk) Britons are still visa-free for tourist trips to Greece and the wider Schengen area for up to 90 days in any 180-day period, and passport-validity rules have not changed. U.K. travel advice says Greece sets and enforces its own entry rules, and travelers should check with the Greek Embassy if they are unsure how a rule applies to them. (gov.uk) The immediate result is narrower than a rewrite of Schengen policy: Greece appears to be dropping the biometric step for U.K. passport holders at its own border points, not abolishing the Entry/Exit System itself. For British tourists heading to Greek islands in peak season, that could mean fewer border formalities and shorter airport lines this summer. (home-affairs.ec.europa.eu)