EES stands for Entry/Exit System. It is an automated border checks system designed to register non-EU nationals each time they enter or exit the external borders of participating European countries.
EU Entry/Exit System
What is the Entry/Exit System?
The EES replaces manual passport stamping and automates border control procedures. It digitally identifies travellers who have the right to enter and makes it easier to detect travellers who have overstayed or used false identities and passports.
The EES will work in tandem with other European information systems (such as Schengen Information System (SIS) and the Visa Information System (VIS)) and ETIAS to facilitate the correct and complete identification of travellers.
Which are the participating European countries?
The 29 European countries who will use the EES are: Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, the 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.
Cyprus and Ireland will not implement the EES and continue to stamp passports manually.
When will the EES be operational?
On March 5, 2025, the European Council announced a possible start date of October 2025 for the progressive rollout of the EES. This timeline is not yet official as the European Parliament must now review and approve this approach.
The official EU website continues to state that the system ‘is expected to start in October 2025’ and clarifies that EU authorities will inform about the start of the EES ‘several months prior’ to its launch.
On May 21, 2025, the European Council and European Parliament reached a provisional deal regarding the timeline for implementation of the EES. The new rules will enable EU countries to implement the EES gradually over a 180-day period or choose to start operating the system fully from day one.
The Commission will decide when to commence the 180-day period in which EU countries will begin the incremental implementation of EES at their borders.
To whom will EES apply?
The EES applies to non-EU nationals travelling for a short stay (up to a maximum of 90 days in any 180-day period) to a participating European country, who are:
- Visa-required nationals, travelling based on their short-stay Schengen C visa (e.g., Chinese nationals or Indian nationals) for the number of days allowed by their visa; or
- Visa-exempt nationals travelling on the basis of their passport for stays of a maximum of 90 days in any 180-day period (e.g., U.S., UK, or Japanese nationals) in the participating EES countries.
The EES will not apply to citizens of EU countries and their family members, residence permit holders or long-stay visa holders of EU countries, nationals of Andorra, Monaco and San Marino, holders of a passport issued by the Vatican City State or the Holy See, among others.
Be Aware: Despite the digitalisation of border checks, border officials still have full discretion to allow or refuse entry.
What type of travel document will the EES require?
In principle, both biometric and non-biometric passports will be accepted when crossing the borders, if valid and all the other entry conditions are fulfilled.
A biometric passport (a passport containing a chip with biometric information) is required for travellers that want to use automated ways to cross the borders (“self-service systems”), which are available at certain border crossing points.
What type of information will the EES collect?
The EES will track short-term stays of a maximum 90 days in any 180-day period in the Schengen Area and other European countries using the EES. The EES will collect and record:
- data listed in your travel document (for example, full name, date of birth, the validity of the travel document)
- date and place of entry into and exit from a European country using the EES
- facial image and fingerprints (so-called ‘biometric data’)
- refusal of entry, if applicable
To whom will this information be available?
Each country will designate the relevant authorities to have access to enter, amend, delete, or consult the data above including border, visa, and immigration authorities. This will further facilitate the identification of travellers, and the verification of whether they have not been issued an entry ban or previously stayed longer than permitted.
Additional authorities may also have consultation access for the purpose of preventing, detecting, or investigating serious crimes.
What happens in case of overstay?
Overstay can be sanctioned severely, leading, in some cases, to the issuance of a re-entry ban against the overstayer. Other sanctions, such as fines, temporary detention and deportation may also apply.
Most importantly, overstay instances will be recorded into a database to which several authorities of all EU participating countries have access (passport control officers, national immigration authorities, consular authorities, etc.). This may severely hamper the possibility of accessing the territory or future immigration plans to the participating countries of those who exceed their allowed duration of stay.
Will the EES help me track my stay in the Schengen area and other European countries participating to the EES?
Once the EES is fully operational, an online system will be made available where travellers can consult the number of days remaining on the territory of European countries using the EES.
Note: the period of 90 days in any 180 days is calculated as a single period for all the European countries using the EES (including for one EU non-Schengen country, Cyprus). Different rules will apply for visa required nationals.