The European Union’s new Entry/Exit System (EES) is set to roll out this October, introducing biometric border checks for all non-EU travellers. The UK’s busiest port, Dover, is facing potential delays as drivers and coach passengers will undergo facial biometric scans, fingerprinting and passport logging before boarding ferries to France.
The EES is a digital border management scheme for the Schengen area that tracks non-EU, non-EEA and non-Swiss nationals. It captures face and fingerprint biometrics and passport data at every entry and exit; recording dates and locations of travel to enhance security, curb overstays and streamline immigration processes across member states.
In June, EU Commissioner Magnus Brunner confirmed that all required readiness declarations are in place, greenlighting an October start. France’s approval this summer marks the final hurdle, following earlier clearances from Germany, the Netherlands and other Schengen countries. A formal regulation is expected to be signed this month, launching a six-month window for full EES implementation.
European authorities reached an agreement in May to introduce the EES over 180 days to avoid a simultaneous launch in all countries that could cause long queues and technical issues.
Port of Dover Chief Executive Doug Bannister warns of “big change” come autumn and the port has rowed back on plans for handing tablets directly to vehicles over long tailback concerns. Instead, drivers will park on newly reclaimed land at the western docks, exit their vehicles and register their biometrics at self-service kiosks before driving on to the eastern docks for final passport checks.
Coach passengers will face a similar routine. Buses will stop in a newly created holding area where each rider must use one of the 24 self-service kiosks to enter biometric data. Once everyone is registered, the coach will be “sealed” and allowed to proceed to the ferry terminal.
The EU border agency Frontex has launched a “Travel to Europe” app promising to let passengers scan their passports and snap a selfie at home to speed up border queues. However, Dover does not expect the app to be operational during the initial EES rollout, meaning most travellers will rely on the kiosks when they arrive.
Eurostar relied on self-serve kiosks for border checks at St Pancras station in London until the end of February. The system was based on face biometric technology from iProov and Entrust‘s IDVaaS technology for digital travel credential management. The two companies are also involved in the “Travel to Europe” app, being named as the developers in January.
The “Travel to Europe” app will be piloted for the first time in Sweden’s Arlanda Airport this year. It is to be piloted in several major French travel hubs next year, as well as entry points in the Netherlands and Italy.
While the pre-registration app may not be used for every border crossing point, big travel hubs will see a clear value in it, Frontex Deputy Executive Director Uku Särekanno said last month.
“The app is ready to be used with the start of the EES in the coming autumn,” says Särekanno. “Frontex has done its part, developed a scalable and secure app. Now it is up to every Member State to integrate the app with its national systems.”
Six months after EES is fully live, travellers will need to obtain pre-travel clearance via ETIAS, Europe’s answer to the U.S.’ ESTA system. The online authorization will cost €7 (US$8.21) initially and grant multiple entries over three years, or until a passport expires.
Passengers are being urged to plan for longer waits as the new biometric checks bed in and to brace for teething troubles such as kiosk malfunctions or network issues. Once registered, however, repeat trips could become smoother as stored biometric credentials replace manual passport checks.
Airports in Spain, Portugal ready biometric change
While Dover is well known in Britain as a seaport connecting to Calais, France by ferries, airports across Europe are also preparing for the imminent EES.
The Region of Murcia’s International Airport in Spain is finalizing the installation of its new biometric border control system for non-EU travellers. Also known as Corvera airport, the EES system will, like others, scan passports and fingerprint and face biometrics, and record exact entry and exit dates. Travelers from outside the EU and Schengen zone will need to use the new EES machines at Corvera.
Airports across Portugal have been installing new biometric border control systems in the past month, but there have been reports of delays at these systems. Officials have laid the blame at increased passenger traffic and greater demand for checks as per EU regulations, according to a report by Portugal News.
Portugal’s Internal Security System (SSI) says the security and technology needs an “adaptation period.” As the UK gears up for the summer holidays and families take trips abroad, this might not have been the best time for this bedding-in period but it is ahead of the EU’s schedule. The officials are taking steps to resolve delays.
“Based on ongoing monitoring, several actions have been implemented to improve the service, with the reinforcement of network capacity, the installation of new communication equipment, the commissioning of more automatic passenger control equipment (Rapids) for the the airports of Lisbon, Faro, Porto, Funchal, Ponta Delgada, Porto Santo and Lages, as well as ongoing training for border guards,” the SSI said.
The new systems include VIS4 (European Visa Information System), PASSE+ (National Air and Land Border Control System) and the Borders Portal.
Article Topics
airport biometrics | biometrics | border security | Entry/Exit System (EES) | ETIAS | Frontex | port security | Travel to Europe | UK
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