Is EES running right now?
We check this against the official European Commission source. This page last updated .
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Yes. EES is live and mandatory.
The EU Entry/Exit System is running at the external borders of the European countries that operate it. There is nothing to apply for and nothing to pay — you are registered in person, at the border.
What changed on 6 September 2026: the temporary flexibility that let border posts pause fingerprint and facial-image capture during severe congestion expired. Nine countries — Belgium, France, Germany, Greece, Italy, Malta, the Netherlands, Portugal and Switzerland — asked the European Commission to extend it. The Commission did not. The pause never removed the EES record itself; it only skipped the slowest step.
What has actually happened since: less than the headlines suggested. At the Channel crossings nothing changed at all — see below. Airlines and travel operators have pushed back hard, with Ryanair asking for the flexibility to return until at least April 2027 and one operator calling the rollout failed; the European Commission has said the system “has broadly worked well” and has not committed to bringing the flexibility back.
What is already decided
- Who it applies to
- All non-EU nationals crossing an external Schengen border for a short stay of up to 90 days in any 180-day period.
- Where
- The external borders of the European countries that operate it. Ireland and Cyprus do not operate EES and continue to stamp passports by hand.
- What is recorded
- Your passport details, the date and place of each entry and exit, a facial image and fingerprints.
- What it costs
- Nothing. There is no application, no form and no website. If a site is charging you to “register for EES”, it is not selling you anything real.
- Your first crossing
- You are registered in person and it takes longer than a normal check. Later crossings reuse the record.
- Passport stamps
- Replaced by the digital record at borders where EES is operating.
- Children under 12
- Exempt from giving fingerprints. A facial image is still part of the record.
- EES is not ETIAS
- EES is a border registration that happens when you arrive. ETIAS is a travel authorisation you will apply for online before you travel, and it is not running yet. See our ETIAS status page.
Where it still works differently
This section is the one that changes most often. It reflects the last reporting we were able to confirm, with the date attached to each item.
Border formalities for France happen on the UK side at Dover, Eurotunnel/LeShuttle and Eurostar at St Pancras, and the rollout here has run well behind the rest. It depends on how you are travelling. Coach passengers, freight drivers and foot passengers at Dover have been registered since 12 October 2025. Cars have not. The launch for cars at Dover and LeShuttle was postponed repeatedly and did not happen on 10 April 2026 either — the Port of Dover confirmed that day that EES “has not yet been implemented for cars at either the Port or Le Shuttle”. On 7–8 September 2026 Dover still described it as business as usual, Eurotunnel reported no change for customers, and the Eurostar kiosks at St Pancras were still in testing with no fixed date from the French authorities. The French interior ministry had aimed for a stable system by 6 September 2026; that date passed with no announcement in either direction. Checked again on 7 October 2026: the Port of Dover’s own travel advice still states that the full EES process for tourist traffic has not been implemented there. Treat any date you see for cars as a plan, not a fact: several have already passed without the system starting.
Until 6 September 2026, several countries were pausing biometric capture at busy hubs — reported at Paris CDG and Orly, Amsterdam Schiphol, Frankfurt, Brussels, Milan and the main Portuguese airports. That mechanism has expired, so those pauses should no longer be happening. Queues were already the weak point before it went: waits of up to five hours were reported during July 2026, with Lisbon, Milan, Rome and Kraków among the worst affected. Leave more time than you think you need at a big hub in peak season.
No country has suspended EES, and no country has the legal power to do so.
What some countries did was pause the biometric step, which is a different thing.
Travelling with children
- Under 12: no fingerprints
- Children under 12 are exempt from giving fingerprints. A facial image is still part of the record, and they cannot use the self-service machines — see our guide for families.
- Every child needs their own record
- Their own passport and their own EES record, babies included. There is no family record.
- Allow more time on your first crossing
- A check that used to take 20–25 seconds now takes around 90 seconds per person, and a family of four is four registrations, not one.
- ETIAS will be free for under-18s
- When it starts, under-18s will be exempt from the fee — but they will still need one. See our ETIAS status page.
- The UK is separate
- If you are travelling to the UK and you are not British or Irish, every traveller needs their own ETA, babies included — see the UK ETA for children.
Questions people ask
Do I need to apply for EES before I travel?
No. There is no application. You are registered by the border officer when you arrive.
Do I have to pay anything for EES?
No. EES is free. Any website charging a fee for EES registration is not providing an official service.
Is EES the same thing as ETIAS?
No. EES is a border registration that happens when you arrive in Europe and it is running now. ETIAS is an online travel authorisation you apply for before you travel, and it has not started yet.
Will my passport still be stamped?
At borders where EES is operating, the digital record replaces the stamp.
Do my children have to give fingerprints for EES?
Not if they are under 12. Children under 12 are exempt from giving fingerprints. A facial image is still taken, and under-12s cannot use the self-service kiosks. Our guide for families covers what that means in practice.
Does EES apply to Ireland or Cyprus?
No. Ireland and Cyprus do not operate the Entry/Exit System and continue to stamp passports manually.
Has any country suspended EES?
No. Some countries were pausing the biometric step during severe congestion, which is not the same as suspending the system. That flexibility expired on 6 September 2026.
How long will I be queuing at an EES border?
Longer than before, especially on your first crossing and at peak times. Reported maximum waits during July 2026 reached around 120 minutes at Frankfurt and Amsterdam, against 60 and 80 minutes respectively a year earlier, and waits of up to five hours were reported at the worst-affected airports. Leave more time for connections.
I am driving to France through Dover or the Eurotunnel. Do I have to do the biometrics?
Not yet, if you are in a car. EES has not been implemented for cars at the Port of Dover or LeShuttle, and as of 7 October 2026 the Port of Dover still said the full EES process for tourist traffic had not been implemented there. Coach passengers, freight drivers and foot passengers at Dover have been registered since 12 October 2025. Dates announced for cars have already passed more than once without the system starting, so check again close to your trip.
What we are watching
These are the things that would change the answer above:
- Whether the European Commission brings the flexibility back — IATA asked for it through the winter season and Ryanair has asked for it until at least April 2027
- When biometric capture actually starts for cars at Dover and LeShuttle, and for Eurostar at St Pancras
- Queue times at the main hubs now that the pause is gone
- The ETIAS start date, tracked on our ETIAS status page
Change log
- Corrected a wording error: the Channel rollout has run well behind the rest, not years behind. EES started on 12 October 2025. No change to the status of any crossing.
- Check. No change to ETIAS, to the UK ETA or to the Channel crossings: the Port of Dover still states that the full EES process for tourist traffic has not been implemented. The Channel date moved forward because that claim was re-confirmed at source. The airports section keeps its 8 September date: we found no official change to the flexibility, but have not re-confirmed it at source.
- Weekly check. No change to ETIAS, to the UK ETA or to the Channel crossings. The French interior ministry’s target of a stable system by 6 September 2026 passed without an announcement, and the Port of Dover still states that the full EES process for tourist traffic has not been implemented. Dates on the Channel section moved forward because the claim was re-confirmed at source, not because time passed.
- Channel crossings rewritten and split by how you travel: coaches, freight and foot passengers at Dover have been registered since October 2025, cars have not. Added the queue figures reported for July 2026, and the travel industry’s push to bring the flexibility back.
- Page published. The flexibility mechanism allowing paused biometric capture expired and was not extended.
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Sources
Checked on .
- European Commission — official EES information
- House of Commons Library — The EU Entry/Exit system and EU travel authorisation system (CBP-10676)
- Euronews — EES border checks are changing from 6 September (4 September 2026)
- ABTA — Upcoming changes for travel to Europe
- The Connexion — EES biometrics still on hold for cars at Dover and Eurotunnel (31 July 2026, updated 13 August 2026)
- GOV.UK — Apply for an electronic travel authorisation (ETA)
- Euronews — Travel industry piles pressure on EU as ‘shambolic’ EES rollout sparks fresh fears (8 September 2026)
- The Connexion — Will tighter EES border checks cause long queues? (7 September 2026, updated 8 September)
- KentOnline — EU biometric tests at Dover and Eurotunnel delayed again (10 April 2026)
- Port of Dover — EU Entry/Exit System travel advice (checked 7 October 2026)
- Dover District Council — Update on the introduction of EES at the Port of Dover
About this page
VIARYO is not a government body and this page is not an official source. We read the official information published by the European Commission and summarise what it says, with the date we last checked it — you can read how we check our information. Where the two ever disagree, the official source is right and we are wrong — always confirm your own situation at the official EES page.
We are building VIARYO so that travellers do not have to keep checking pages like this one themselves.