EU passport system chaos
- The European Union’s Entry/Exit System became fully operational on April 10, replacing passport stamps with biometric registration for non-EU short-stay travellers across Schengen borders and triggering fresh warnings about longer airport queues. - The European Commission says the system has already logged more than 52 million entries and exits, plus over 27,000 refusals, while first-time travellers must now provide a facial image and fingerprints. - Greece’s updated UK travel advice says biometric registration “may” now be required, underscoring a wider Schengen shift that still excludes Cyprus and Ireland. (gov.uk)
The European Union’s Entry/Exit System became fully operational on April 10, replacing passport stamps with biometric registration for non-EU travellers at Schengen borders. (home-affairs.ec.europa.eu) The system records passport details, facial images and fingerprints for short-stay visitors, then logs each entry, exit or refusal in a central digital file. (commission.europa.eu) (travel-europe.europa.eu) For first-time travellers after the rollout, border officers take a photo and scan fingerprints; later crossings are supposed to require only a quicker verification. (travel-europe.europa.eu) Brussels says the system is now active at all Schengen external border crossing points, except in Cyprus and Ireland, which are outside the EES regime. (commission.europa.eu) (travel-europe.europa.eu) The European Commission says more than 52 million entries and exits have already been registered since the phased launch began in October 2025, along with more than 27,000 refusals of entry and more than 700 people flagged as security risks. (home-affairs.ec.europa.eu) That phased launch started on October 12, 2025 and ran for six months before the full switch on April 10, 2026, after EU governments agreed to a gradual rollout. (home-affairs.ec.europa.eu) (consilium.europa.eu) For British travellers, Greece’s Foreign Office advice was updated on April 20 to say biometric details such as fingerprints and a photo may now be required when entering the Schengen area for short stays. (gov.uk 1) (gov.uk 2) UK government guidance also says queues at borders “may be longer” under the new system, a warning that applies across the Schengen area rather than to Greece alone. (gov.uk 1) (gov.uk 2) The next border change is still ahead: the separate European Travel Information and Authorisation System, or ETIAS, is scheduled to start in the last quarter of 2026 and will add a pre-trip travel authorisation for visa-exempt visitors. (travel-europe.europa.eu 1) (travel-europe.europa.eu 2) For now, the practical change is simpler than the acronym soup: first entry into Schengen can take longer, repeat entries should move faster, and the old passport stamp is no longer the record that counts. (commission.europa.eu) (travel-europe.europa.eu)
