For many travellers, 2025 was not about one new rule but several overlapping systems moving at different speeds. The key to making sense of the year was understanding that the UK's ETA, the EU's EES and the later ETIAS permit were separate changes with separate timelines.
Before the planned 2024 launch of the EU's Entry/Exit System, ABTA's message was clear: travellers needed to expect a new border routine, not just another headline. The biggest early change was the first-time registration process, which was expected to slow some crossings before the system settled in.
The EU's long-delayed border overhaul is moving again, but with a major concession. To avoid severe queues, some travellers at busy checkpoints may initially be waved through without full biometric registration.
In August 2024, European Commissioner Ylva Johansson confirmed that the Entry/Exit System was on track for a November 2024 start, with ETIAS to follow six months later. This article reflects the reporting at that time — note that the EES eventually launched in October 2025 and the ETIAS fee was confirmed at €20, not the €7 cited here.
ABTA used an early 2024 webinar announcement to underline how significant EES and ETIAS would be for UK travel businesses. The immediate priority was to get accurate information from the agencies building the systems before customer confusion spread.
When the EU Entry/Exit System takes effect, British passport holders will for the first time need to provide biometric data at European borders. This article, written in late 2023, previews what the new checks will require and what the processing challenges could look like at key UK departure points.
In late 2023, airlines and travel insiders warned that switching on the EU's Entry/Exit System everywhere at the same time could create serious operational strain. The debate focused on testing gaps, border readiness and what biometric processing would mean for British travellers.
Brexit did not end travel between the UK and Europe, but it made it more restrictive, more administrative and often more expensive. British travellers now face tighter passport rules, stay limits, added border friction and fewer of the practical conveniences they once took for granted.
British travellers still enjoy visa-free short trips to much of Europe, but the rules are no longer as simple as they were before Brexit. Passport validity, the 90/180-day limit, and upcoming ETIAS and EES checks now shape every journey.