EU's ESS comes into effect, longer waiting time expected

The European Union’s (EU) new Entry/Exit System (EES) came into effect for people travelling to the Schengen area on Sunday.

Airlines have requested their travellers to review the new requirements and check how these changes may affect their journey by visiting the official EU website.

EES may take each passenger a few extra minutes to complete, so be prepared to wait longer than usual at the border once the system comes into effect, according to the VFS and airlines operating to the EU.

According to the VFS Global, countries in the Schengen area are Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Italy, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, and Switzerland.

The Republic of Ireland and Cyprus are not within the Schengen area, and therefore, EES is not applicable when travelling to either of these countries.

If travelling to a country in the Schengen area for a short stay using your passport, it is mandatory to register your biometric details, such as fingerprints and a photo, on arrival. There is no need to take any action before arriving at the border, and there is no cost for EES registration.

  EES registration will gradually replace the current system of manually stamping passports when visitors arrive in the EU.

From April 10, 2026, airlines or other transport operators will be required to verify the following before boarding: such as Non-EU nationals requiring a short-stay visa possess a valid visa, number of entries authorised by the visa has not been exhausted.

If these conditions are not met, the traveller will be denied boarding authorisation.

The new system will replace the manual stamping process at immigration with a digital record of biometric data at entry and exit.

Non-EU nationals arriving for short stays in all EU countries will be asked to provide their passport number, fingerprints, and photo at automated kiosks, one of the airlines said.