Travel within Europe will change from Sunday, October 12, 2025, with new rules within European airports. The new biometric control system at the European Union’s borders, known as Entry/Exit System (EES), comes into force, aimed at citizens of third countries who do not need a visa to enter the Schengen area. The measure, postponed several times in the last three years, promises to reduce queues and strengthen border security, replacing traditional stamps in the passport with a digital record of entries and exits.
According to the Italian generalist newspaper Corriere della Sera, the EES system will begin to be implemented gradually at airports, ports and land borders across the European Union, with full operation scheduled for April 2026. The objective is to more effectively monitor migratory flows and modernize border control without compromising the privacy of travelers.
How the new EES system will work
According to the same source, EES will collect biometric data such as fingerprints, facial recognition and, in some cases, iris reading. In addition, it will record personal information such as name, nationality, date and location of entry and exit of each traveler. This data will replace the current method of manually stamping passports, which will be progressively eliminated.
The new system only applies to citizens of countries outside the European Union who do not require a visa for short stays, up to 90 days in a period of 180. Countries covered include the United Kingdom, the United States, Japan, Israel and Brazil, among others.
For European Union citizens, nothing changes: they will continue to be able to travel within the Schengen area with a valid Citizen Card or passport, without mandatory biometric registration.
Less queues, more control
The explains that the EES aims to “reduce waiting times at borders and make the process more efficient”. By eliminating the need for physical stamps and automating the registration of entries and exits, it is expected to speed up controls, especially at the main European airports.
However, the transition may generate initial constraints, especially in the first weeks, due to the adaptation of systems and staff training.
European authorities guarantee that data will be collected with the consent of travelers and stored securely, in accordance with European Union data protection standards.
A system that arrives after years of postponements
The introduction of EES has been successively delayed since 2022 for technical reasons and privacy concerns.
According to the Italian publication, the delays are also due to the need to make the systems of all Member States compatible and ensure that biometric collection equipment works simultaneously.
The European Union hopes that, once stabilized, the system will allow for more rigorous control of entries and exits, helping to detect situations of irregular stay and reinforcing control over migratory flows.
With its full implementation scheduled for 2026, the EES represents one of the biggest technological advances at European borders in recent decades: a change that promises to transform the travel experience for millions of people around the world.
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