For many travellers, 10 November will be the day when Brexit becomes a reality. Generations who remember showing British passports at the EU border and going through immigration without any other process will be in for a shock.
EU passport stamps returned after Brexit, but the system will soon go fully digital. Since the UK left the EU in January 2020, Britons have been able to get a passport stamp on their summer trips, but November brings another key step change. From 10 November, tourists going to Europe must think like they are going to the US. There will no longer be passport stamping under the EU’s entry-exit system (EES). Instead, people’s movements will be digitally recorded every time they enter the block.
The downside is that the new border systems need to be loaded with travellers’ information – a biometric facial image and fingerprint scans. And therein lies the potential problem: because this is an EU initiative, this biometric data must be collected at EU airports. This increases the likelihood of long travel delays, if not in November, then certainly next summer.
The EES will be implemented in 29 European countries, including Iceland, Norway and Switzerland. Cyprus and Ireland are exempt and will continue to stamp passports, although Irish passport holders – as EU citizens – will be exempt from EES. Travellers’ biometric data will have to be renewed every three years.
EU Home Affairs Commissioner Ylva Johansson insisted that the EES will be applied “at every airport, at every port, on every road to Europe” and that “everything will be activated at the same time”.
UK airports will “breathe a sigh of relief” as they are not responsible for implementing EES and the requirement is for entry into the EU, so it will not affect returning passengers. There will be no impact on UK airports.
However, there will be an impact in the UK at departure points where there are dual UK and French borders – Dover (ferries), St Pancras (Eurostar) and Folkestone Eurotunnel. At these points, checks will be made at passport control on departure from the UK.
Increased complexity
Others do not share this confidence. Iata has warned of unresolved – though unspecified – technical issues, with many ports not yet having installed the equipment needed to capture the necessary information and biometrics.
Aena, whose 48 airports in Spain processed almost 32 million passengers in July alone, says it is “working to procure and install the necessary equipment to deploy EES”.
Abta CEO Mark Tanzer says Abta will work with the UK government to disseminate information and resolve problems and urged the industry to start stepping up its preparations. The association has published guidance on trading in its member zone and will hold a teleconference for its members in September.
Indeed, and the EES is just the beginning, with the EU’s Etias (European Travel Information and Authorisation System) visa waiver scheme to follow next May, bringing additional requirements for travellers and potential headaches for agents.
Julia Lo Bue-Said, managing director of the Advantage Travel Partnership, warns that the launch of EES and Etias “will add significant complexity for many travellers who are unclear about what this means for them and their travel plans in the EU”.
She calls for an awareness campaign before next summer. “At the moment, there is very limited public awareness of what this means for those expecting to travel to Europe from outside the EU,” warns Lo Bue-Said. “As we approach the start and key travel periods, clear and transparent communication will be vital. Safety and security are, of course, paramount, but it is vital that the government and the travel industry work together to ensure Brits have a full understanding of the new systems when they come into force and how they will affect travel.”
The new Labour government, perhaps predictably, has been less than impressed by the preparatory work done by the previous Conservative government. Earlier this year, Immigration Minister Seema Malhotra said she was “not satisfied” with the UK’s preparedness, echoing the findings of a House of Lords committee in May.
The summer of 2025 is the likely flashpoint. Etias will be similar to the US Esta system, with electronic registration costing €7/£6. It will be valid for three years or until people’s passports are valid for three months or less, whichever comes first. Etias will be free for under-18s and over-70s and will be required for travel to 30 countries, including Cyprus, Iceland, Norway and Switzerland.
The EU exemption from the Esta visa requirement in the US is expected to come into force next May. Unlike the EES, Etias will impose some burden on the travel industry, with air and sea carriers required to verify 48 hours before departure whether non-visa travellers have a valid Etias permit. International coach operators will have three years to comply with this requirement.
Aito, meanwhile, has called on all border control forces to “make full use of the available preventive measures” and will “relax controls where waiting times are excessive”. It has also called for any transition period, which is expected to be initially six months, to be extended during the peak summer season.
