What EU Fingerprint and Facial Scan Checks Will Mean for UK Travellers

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What the New Biometric System Will Require

The Entry/Exit System (EES) is a European Union border programme that will require non-EU nationals — including British citizens — to provide fingerprints and a facial photograph each time they enter or exit the Schengen Area for the first time in a rolling three-year period. Writing in December 2023, journalists noted that the system was then expected to go live on 6 October 2024, though the actual launch did not occur until October 2025 following further delays.

Under EES, a traveller's biometric data will be captured at the border on the first crossing of each three-year cycle. Subsequent entries and exits will draw on that stored record, making the process faster after initial registration. Children under 12 will be required to provide a photograph but not fingerprints. The system covers 25 EU member states plus four Schengen-associated non-EU countries. Ireland and Cyprus are not part of the Schengen Area and are therefore outside EES requirements.

The system will also track the number of days spent in the Schengen Area within the 90-day-in-any-180-days limit, replacing hand-stamped passports as the official record of entry and exit dates.

Processing Times and Border Challenges at UK Departure Points

Because French police conduct passport and border checks at Dover, Folkestone, and St Pancras station in London under juxtaposed border arrangements, EES biometric capture would happen on British soil rather than at the European destination. This unusual geography placed the processing burden directly on infrastructure at UK departure points.

Early estimates suggested that a family of five could take up to ten minutes to complete EES registration at Dover, compared with a standard passport check that typically takes a fraction of that time. Eurotunnel journeys that previously allowed roughly 60 seconds per vehicle for border formalities could expand to five to seven minutes under EES, with knock-on effects on queue management across the terminal.

Channel Tunnel operator Getlink was investing around €70 million in new booths, kiosks, and systems to handle the change. Eurostar had approved expenditure on additional kiosks and was expanding its border processing capacity. Dover Harbour Board and transport operators warned of alarm at the potential for severe disruption if infrastructure was not ready in time. ACI Europe, representing airports, estimated that average processing time for non-EU passengers could increase by around 50 per cent once EES was fully active.

ETIAS: The Next Step After EES

ETIAS, the European Travel Information and Authorisation System, is designed to follow EES into operation by approximately six months once EES is running stably. ETIAS is most closely comparable to the US Electronic System for Travel Authorization (ESTA) and Australia's Electronic Travel Authority: a pre-travel online authorisation that eligible passport holders must obtain before arriving in the Schengen Area.

The application is designed to take only a few minutes and to be approved within seconds for most travellers, though processing can take up to four weeks in cases requiring manual review. An ETIAS authorisation would be valid for three years or until the passport expires, whichever comes first, and would allow multiple trips without reapplication.

The fee for ETIAS applies to travellers aged 18 to 70. While 2023 reporting cited a proposed fee of €7, the confirmed fee upon implementation is €20. Travellers under 18 and over 70 are exempt. ETIAS does not replace a visa: travellers who require a Schengen visa are not eligible for ETIAS and must apply through the normal visa process.