By Donna Williams • Updated: 14 Sep 2024 • 13:09 • 2 minutes read
Having a TIE will mean you are exempt from EES registration. Credit: Shutterstock: Mundissima
British holidaymakers flying to any of these 29 destinations may need to register their fingerprint for entry from November when the Entry/Exit System is set to be introduced.
The highly anticipated Entry/Exit System (EES) is scheduled to be launched in November after experiencing numerous delays and setbacks. It’s worth noting that in addition to airports, other modes of transportation will also be introducing EES.
For example, the Entry/Exit System will also be implemented at specific points in South England where French Border Forces conduct immigration checks. These include the port of Dover, the Eurotunnel, and St Pancras for the Eurostar. To minimise any inconvenience, it has been purported that the Eurotunnel will have over 100 kiosks, the Port of Dover will have 24 kiosks, and the Eurostar will have almost 50.
Once the new security system is in place, the UK Government has advised that most non-Eu citizens will be required to establish a ‘digital record’ before they can enter any of the countries within the Schengen Area. This process will involve registering biometric details, such as fingerprints, and having a photo taken upon entering the relevant country.
It is worth noting that UK residents in Spain who possess a TIE card will be exempt from EES registration. However, the same does not apply to those who still have the non-biometric Green Certificate.
The exact date for introducing the new facilities to enforce the Entry/Exit System requirement is unknown. However, it is anticipated that once it is operational, it will only take travellers a few minutes to comply.
Furthermore, the UK Government has stated, “If British travellers decide to travel to visit a country in the Schengen area again within a three-year period of creating a digital record, they will only need to provide either their fingerprint or photograph at the border on entry and exit.”
All 25 EU countries, excluding Cyprus and Ireland, will adopt the Entry/Exit System as they are also Schengen State Members. The remaining four Schengen Area members are Norway, Iceland, Switzerland, and Lichtenstein.
For the avoidance of doubt, the full 29 countries are Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Italy, Latvia, Lichtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden and Switzerland.
As a reminder, the Entry/Exit System will replace the current method of manually stamping passports whenever a non-Schengen member enters one of these countries. This technological advancement aims to prevent people from abusing the 90-day rule and overstaying. It is also hoped that it will help tackle issues surrounding illegal immigrants.
Find more articles on the Entry/Exit System
Visit the UK Government website for further information on how EES will affect you
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Marketer, copywriter, storyteller and President of Samaritans in Spain. They say variety is the spice of life and I am definitely loving life!
And catch wanted people!
Perhaps, and all the illegals will be detained before reaching Calais. If it will only take a few minutes to comply then I presume the issue of a TIE will likewise be a few minutes exercise but don’t hold your breath.
You have to laugh at the comment ´´to catch illegal immigrants and terrorists´´ these people have absolutely no fear of this pointless system, this new system is about controlling the law abiding citizens. I hope the UK government have the same system in place and while we are at it it is time the UK restricted the movement beteen Erin and the UK.
does this apply to people arriving in small boats from France
Thank you for reading my article and taking the time to comment – you may well be right!
“It is also hoped that it will help tackle issues surrounding illegal immigrants.” Laughable considering governments are doing nothing to stop illegals from entering their countries and in many cases encouraging it! Note to government officials who seems to have lost their ability to think…ILLEGALS don’t come into these countries legally or with documentation. Most arrive by boat with no paper documents whatsoever and then are ushered in and provided food, shelter, and health care off the backs of taxpayers in the respective countries. So this really is just another way for big brother to keep tabs on the every move a person makes. Orwellian and would have made Hitler proud!
The reason people with a TIE will be ‘exempt’ is only because their fingerprints/biometrics are already in the system. America have been doing this for years.
This is very true, but unfortunately, people are naturally very wary of change of any kind.
No borders and free travel throughout the EU was a nice idea decades ago, now the world has changed dramatically, last year I drove from Spain through France into Belgium and on to Dunkirk, no checks, same from Italy, yesterday Germany said it was bringing back border check points to try and control immigration, multiculturalism doesn’t work, look a riots around the EU and U.K. recently, tax payers fed up paying for tens of thousands who have never paid a Euro tax, unfair, needs controls.
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