Meeting in Budva in October 2024, EU and Western Balkan ministers reaffirmed close cooperation on justice and home affairs, from fighting trafficking to aligning visa policies and preparing for the EES and ETIAS.
Travel industry leaders are asking the UK government to postpone its new Electronic Travel Authorisation, warning that launching it alongside the EU's delayed Entry/Exit System could overwhelm travellers. Here is where the timeline stands.
Meeting in Luxembourg on 10 October 2024, EU home affairs ministers examined how the Entry/Exit System would be rolled out in phases, when ETIAS would follow, and how to reinforce the resilience of the Schengen area's external borders.
Meeting in Luxembourg on 13 June 2024, EU home affairs ministers moved the new migration and asylum pact from the negotiating table toward real-world delivery, while keeping an eye on the looming launch of the EES and ETIAS border systems.
On 10 April 2024 the European Parliament approved a reform of Eurodac, the EU's fingerprint database for asylum seekers and irregular migrants. The update adds facial images, lowers the identification age to six and links Eurodac to other EU systems.
Over two days in Brussels, EU justice and home affairs ministers tackled drug trafficking, migrant smuggling and the future of Europe's border databases, with the EES and ETIAS rollout firmly in view.
Meeting in Luxembourg on 19-20 October 2023, EU ministers weighed the internal-security implications of the Middle East crisis alongside the migration pact talks and endorsed a new timetable for Europe's digital border systems.
British travellers will not need an ETIAS "eurovisa" to visit the European Union until 2025 at the earliest, after the EU tied the permit to its delayed Entry/Exit System. With a likely soft launch, some Britons may not need an ETIAS for another two years.