The Entry/Exit System is a comprehensive reform to modernise checks at the EU’s external borders and promote information-sharing.
The European Commission has decided to delay the introduction of the Entry/Exit System (EES), the bloc’s automated registry for short-stay travellers that was expected to come into force on 10 November.
The announcement was made by Ylva Johansson, the Commissioner for Home Affairs, at the end of a meeting of EU interior ministers on Thursday where the issue was discussed.
“It’s clear that is not going to be the 10th of November,” Johansson told reporters, noting three member states had indicated they were not yet ready.
Before the confirmation, diplomats in Brussels had identified the countries as Germany, France and the Netherlands.
“We also have some concerns of the resilience of the (IT) system,” Johansson added, floating a phased-in approach that would establish the EES “step by step.”
The EES is a comprehensive reform that has been long in the works and repeatedly pushed back. Its main purpose is to modernise checks at the EU’s external borders and replace the traditional physical stamping of passports.
It will apply to non-EU citizens who come to the bloc for visits, holidays or business trips and stay for a total duration of up to 90 days within a 180-day period.
Once the system goes live, visitors will have to provide their passports on arrival, alongside having a photo of their face taken and their fingerprints scanned electronically.
All entries and exits from the passport-free Schengen Area will be recorded.
The collection of biometric data and the sharing of information in real time are meant to help authorities crack down on those who overstay their short-term visas and commit identity fraud.
All member states, except Cyprus and Ireland, and four Schengen-associate countries – Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway and Switzerland – will take part in the scheme.
Passports in Cyprus and Ireland will continue to be stamped manually.
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