Visas & Entry

The EU just let nine countries relax its EES border checks. Is your airport one of them?

Europe’s EES fingerprint grace period ended on 6 September, then nine countries were reportedly allowed to keep it. What it means for your border…

By Bishnu Adhikari · Sep 19, 2026

Europe's new biometric border check, the Entry/Exit System (EES), lost its safety valve on 6 September 2026 — and then, a week later, nine countries were reportedly allowed to keep it anyway. France, Germany, Italy, Belgium, the Netherlands, Greece, Malta…

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What changed on 6 September

The emergency brake came off. Since the system went fully live in April, border guards at busy crossings could stop taking fingerprints and face scans when waiting times became excessive, and simply wave people through with a passport check. That discretion…

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Which countries can still ease the check

Nine, by the current reporting — and they include most of the big long-haul hubs. Frankfurt, Paris, Amsterdam, Munich and Rome all sit in countries on the list. Madrid and Barcelona do not. "May suspend" is not "will suspend". The flexibility is a tool for…

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How bad the queues have been

Roughly twice as long as a year earlier at the worst hubs. Figures compiled by the Financial Times and the travel analytics group Qsensor, reported by Euronews, compared July 2026 with July 2025: Those July numbers were recorded while the flexibility was…

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Who has to register, and what it takes

Anyone who is not an EU citizen and is visiting for a short stay. That covers visa-free visitors on the 90-days-in-180 allowance — Britons, Americans, Canadians, Australians — and travellers who need a Schengen visa, including Nepali and Indian passport…

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What this means for a trip to Nepal

What this means for you If you are an EU citizen flying to Kathmandu, none of this touches you. If you are a British, American or Australian trekker connecting through a European hub, EES only applies if you actually enter the Schengen area. A connection that…

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Does EES cost anything?

No. EES is a free border registration. The fee you may have read about, €20, belongs to ETIAS, which has not launched.

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Do I need to do anything before I fly?

No pre-registration is required. Some airports offer self-service kiosks or apps that pre-capture data, but the check itself happens at the border.

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Is the nine-country list official?

Not yet. It was reported on 14 September and the European Commission declined to comment. We will update this piece if it is confirmed or changed. Sources: Biometric Update, 14 September 2026; Euronews, 12 August 2026, citing Financial Times and Qsensor data…

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