PASSPORTS: No more European passport stamps from 10 November 2024. Digital is the future.
The European Union is to replace stamps in your passport with a digital electronic Entry/Exit System (EES) for foreign visitors. The change is due on 10 November 2024
No longer will you be able to use your passport to trip down memory lane. It will no longer be an aide-memoire, for all the countries you visited in the last 10 years. The European Union is abandoning passport stamps come November 2024.
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The EES (Exit/Entry System)
Under the new system, non-European visitors entering the European Union (EU) will have their fingerprints and faces scanned upon entry. The biometric data obtained will be used to confirm a visitor’s entry and exit from the EU.
“When that happens, it will be goodbye to passport stamping, hello to digital checks for all passengers from outside the EU.
“At every single airport, every single harbour and every single road into Europe, we will have digital border controls making travel easier and border checks gradually faster.”
Ylva Johansson, EU commissioner
You will need a biometric or e-passport, but since these have been issued in Australia since 2005, yours is almost certainly compatible with the new digital process. If for some reason you don’t have a biometric passport, that will mean you have to go through a longer process. You also won’t be able to use self-service passport control lanes.
The EEIS (European Travel Information and Authorisation System)
The EES also sets the stage for the introduction of the long-delayed European Travel Information and Authorisation System (ETIAS) – mandatory electronic visa waiver in the first half of 2025.
The ETIAS is similar to the United States’ ESTA program or the UKs ETA to be launched later this year. The ETIAS will cost €7 (A$11.50) and have a validity of three years.
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This is an excellent move, and will make everything much smoother. If implemented well, it should cut immigration time markedly, and make transiting EU countries much more efficient.
However, for Australian passport hoders that are used to gaining entry to many countries without a visa at the border, the new ETIAS will add an online proceedure for travellers to complete prior to arrival.
Hooray, Finally, Saves me AUD 500 pa for worlds most expensive passport
Hi Robbo,
Thanks for the comment. However, I’m not sure this will save you the cost of an Australia Passport. You will still need a passport, you just won’t be getting a stamp. You’ll still need it to confirm you are who you say you are.