How the entry/exit system works

The Entry/Exit System (EES), which became operational on 10 April 2026 and was launched on 12 October 2025, automates border registration for non-EU nationals, simplifies controls, and enhances security.

What is the entry/exit system?

The entry/exit system (EES) is a new EU-wide digital border management system that records the entry and exit of non-EU nationals crossing the Schengen area’s external borders for short stays. It replaces the old system of manual passport stamping with fast and secure biometric checks.

Travellers will be registered every time they cross the external borders of the Schengen area (which includes all EU countries, with the exception of Cyprus and Ireland, as well as Norway, Switzerland, Iceland and Liechtenstein), whether at an airport, seaport or land crossing.

The system will apply to all non-EU nationals, that is, travellers not holding the nationality of any European Union country or of Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway or Switzerland. It applies to short stays of up to 90 days within any 180-day period – with this period being calculated as a single period for all European countries using the EES.

Visualisation of the new entry-exit system device.

How the system works

Non-EU nationals arriving at a border crossing point for the first time following the introduction of the EES will have to provide their personal data. Border officers will scan their fingerprints and take a photo of their face. This information will be recorded in a digital file.

Travellers who entered the Schengen area already before will have their data, such as fingerprints or the photo, already recorded in the system. In such case, passport control officers will only need to verify the fingerprints and photo. In rare cases, it may be necessary to collect and record data again.

Biometric passport holders will be able to pass the crossing more quickly using the self-service system (if available at the border crossing point in question).

What is collected and stored by the entry/exit system

The system collects and stores the key data needed to track the entry, exit and refusal of entry for non-EU nationals travelling to and from the Schengen area. This includes:

the data listed in the individual’s travel document
the date and place of each entry and exit
biometric data, meaning facial image and fingerprints
any entry refusals

A gradual implementation

The entry/exit system (EES) was launched on 12 October 2025 and progressively deployed across the external Schengen borders during a transitional period.

During this phase, at least one border crossing point in each participating country was operational at launch. Not all crossings or travellers were registered via the EES, and passport stamping continued in parallel.

As of 10 April 2026, the EES has become fully operational. It is now used at all external border crossing points for eligible third-country nationals with biometric passports, and manual passport stamping has ended.