Biometrics captured…entry granted…exit recorded! The European Union Entry–Exit System (EU-EES) was first proposed as a concept in 2008 as part of a communication focused around preparing the next steps for border management in the European Union (EU) by the European Commission (EC). Essentially, the EU-EES is a digitally leveraged system that aims to capture and store the biometric (fingerprints and facial) and biographic data (name, date of birth, nationality) of all Third Country Nationals (TCNs) entering Schengen Area countries (click here to see a full list of countries involved in the EU-EES). The system also electronically records the entry/exit point alongside dates and times of entry and exit. The system will be fully integrated across all border checkpoints in Schengen area countries, including land and sea borders, alongside the typical air borders located at airport immigration areas.
With airports and borders being a core focus of our business, naturally we wanted to update our clients on the latest developments. Especially, as we’re currently in the process of writing and conducting interviews for our inaugural report on “The Future of Smart Borders“. This article will explain the drivers behind the EU-EES process, how it differs from legacy border control processing, and the challenges faced with its implementation.
Key Drivers
There are some notable key drivers that led to the introduction of this scheme, one being that the EU-EES will be able to accurately detect VISA overstayers as the date of entry/exit will be electronically recorded, something that isn’t currently being tracked and managed reliably under the legacy system. Additionally, with the implementation of biometrics at Schengen borders, queues should move faster once travellers have been enrolled into the system and are familiar with the new process of border clearance. With this, bottlenecks are expected to decrease due to travellers being able to clear themselves through self-service and automated technologies. Additionally, it will allow the EU to become more up to date with best practice in border management as the Middle East, Asia-Pacific and the USA are already collecting and storing biometric data upon entry and exit.
On July 30th, 2025, the European Union announced the latest formal launch date for the EU-EES, with the system starting in a phased roll-out capacity from October 12th, 2025. After a wide array of delays due to multiple factors including technical complexities and integration challenges, legal and data privacy concerns, financial difficulties and additional physical infrastructure being required to house the equipment needed for enrolment into the electronic system and the bottlenecks/queues that this would create; a phased-roll out was put into motion. With this approach, EU member states have their choice of two options; countries who are ready to roll –out the system in one go are permitted to do so come October 12th, but other countries, particularly those who struggled more with accommodating and integrating all the necessary components for the system, have been allowed a six month ramp up period. These countries are required to register at least 10% of border crossings biometrically within the first month of the system, with member states then required to implement EU-EES with biometric functionalities at at least 50% of their border crossing checkpoints after three months, then leading up to an expected 100% operability and capacity by the end of this six month ramp up period.
The EU-EES Process and How It Differs to Legacy Border Control Processing
With the introduction of the entry-exit system, TCNs travelling to Europe will have to undertake a new, biometrically and digitally led border control clearance process.
Currently, in air travel, travelers arrive at the point of entry and either journey towards the immigration control area and queue up to see a border control agent, or make their way to the row of ABC eGates for self-clearance through biometric verification with their ePassport. If travelers are required to present themselves to an agent at a booth, the agent will check the travel document and any required travel authorisations, authenticate the identity against the photograph on the presented travel document, and potentially ask questions about the reason and duration of the trip. The agent will then either grant entry and stamp the passport or deny entry and refer the traveller for further screening or questioning if red flags are raised. With land and sea travel, countries are starting to develop alternatives, like the recent development from Inetum, in which they were contracted to deploy a portable border control solution for maritime entry points, supporting Spain’s EU-EES efforts.
However, with the implementation of this new system, a new wrinkle has been implemented for Europe bound TCNs; when arriving at an entry point of a Schengen area country (land, air or sea) for the first time, travellers will now be directed to self-service immigration kiosks in order to capture their passport data alongside registering their fingerprint and facial biometric data. After capture and enrolment into the system, travellers will head to an ABC eGate for automated clearance if agreements are in place for inbound travelers to make use of this automated technology, but if not, travellers will head to the immigration booths and have their face verified using installed pods/totems. It’s important to mention that border guards are not being replaced, rather, the introduction of biometrics is aiding in supplementing the border control clearance process as border guards will still be present to conduct additional assessments at the immigration booth(s) if a traveller isn’t eligible for self-service border clearance at the installed ABC eGates.
With the integration of biometrics at all border crossing points, the traveller can expect a streamlined border clearance process as the leveraging of biometrically enabled technology allows for faster traveller verification and a more seamless experience without sacrificing security, rather increasing it. With biometrics, there is less margin for error than is present with typical border control agents as humans are prone to mistakes, inherently biased and sometimes inconsistent, compared to the rigid processes and checks that come from biometric clearance, the benefits are astronomical; national security is heightened and travellers are able to curve often long queues and lengthy processes and clear the border control checkpoint seamlessly. Conversely, border control agents can spot inconsistencies and behavioural patterns that biometric verification and AI algorithms cannot, e.g. associated behaviours with a traveller smuggling contraband, human trafficking etc. So, with the integration of biometrics and AI at border control checkpoints, agents are now equipped with the requisite technology to make the most informed entry/denial decisions, which are crucial to national security.
Challenges Faced With EU-EES Implementation
As we’re all aware, the EU-EES is an extremely large-scale operation that requires heavy investment. Both in front-end equipment, like ABC eGates, immigration kiosks, pods and totems alongside other manual biometric equipment as well as the necessary backend software that can store, manage and analyse key biometric data while cross-verifying traveler information with watchlists, databases and other associated international databases. With 29 countries needing to be harmonious in their implementation and readiness to launch, the deployment of the system was never going to be easy, and this has been proven. To date, the system has been delayed a handful of times, with the most recent being in October 2024, with the scheduled date of November 10th being delayed due to key member states, most notably France, Germany and the Netherlands stating that they were not ready for the full scale launch of the EU-EES due to a lack of testing time. Due to this, the phased-roll out approach was introduced and eventually implemented as an effective measure to help manage stresses on checkpoints when the system is launched.
Alongside the lack of testing time, technological and logistical challenges were also presented to member states. The necessity to install the requisite hardware at each checkpoint also proved challenging alongside the requisite costs to train personnel in regard to this new system. Also, guaranteeing that existing systems are compatible across member states was vital, and a sticking point; the same can be said for ensuring compliance with the EU’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) regulations, ensuring traveller personal data is being stored, processed and used in accordance to the letter of the law.
The Shared Biometric Matching System (sBMS), managed by the eu-LISA, is the key operational backbone behind the system; it retrieves biometric templates from multiple databases including the Visa Information System (VIS), Eurodac and ECRIS-TCN, to name a few. With this system, agents can quickly identify and verify travellers at the border control checkpoint, ensuring they aren’t flagged on any watchlists or using a false identity to travel. In essence, it centralises data from multiple, previously fragmented watchlists into one central biometric hub, in theory making checks faster, more efficient and securing Schengen borders. Additionally, with the integration of the sBMS, traveller data will now be able to be shared accurately and in real-time across all Schengen area countries, with it being able to highlight a traveller that enters the Schengen area through one country and leaves from another; leading to more accurate records of entry and exit and ensuring that travellers are adhering to the 90/180 day rule. However, multiple operational and legislative challenges have been faced, with the centralisation of this data, potential misuse is a real cause for concern, alongside the potential for mass-scale leaks of this sensitive information. Additionally, with the system set to store over 400 million biometric records, the functionality, reliability and operability of the system can be questioned, which will be explored in Part II.
Summary and Looking Ahead
In Part I of this blog series, we have explored what the EU-EES is and the drivers behind its introduction, the traveler facing process and how it differs to legacy border control processes and some of the challenges that have presented themselves across the lifecycle of the EES. In the next edition, we will highlight the opportunities that the EU-EES may present to industry stakeholders, how the EU-EES interacts with other European databases and the introduction of the ETIAS, and how it aims to alter the future of travel within Schengen area borders.
