An EU border crackdown means Brits travelling to Europe will soon need to prove they have medical insurance and a return ticket.
A digital system for arrivals into the European Union will come into force from October 12, The Times reports.
Non-EU passport holders will have to have their fingerprints and a photograph taken the first time they use it.
Passengers will also be asked a series of questions to check they have proof of accommodation, enough money for the trip, medical insurance and a return or onward ticket.
At most airports and ferry terminals passengers will undergo the process at automated kiosks.
Those who answer no to any questions are expected to be quizzed by a border officer, who can refuse entry.
The entry/exit system (EES) will also automatically flag arrivals at risk of overstaying.
Under post-Brexit rules, Britons without the right to work or reside in the EU can only stay for 90 days in any 180-day period.
There are fears that as the system begins there will be huge queues at EU airports, as well as delays at Dover, Folkestone and London’s St Pancras station, where French border checks are carried out before people embark on cross-Channel journeys.
Strict new border regulations mean Brits travelling to Europe will soon need to prove they have medical insurance and a return ticket, The Times reports. Pictured: Air travellers pass through automated passport border control e-gates at Heathrow Airport on August 2, 2024
A digital system for arrivals into the European Union will come into force from October 12. Pictured: Biometric control in airport
EES will replace the current manual stamping of passports for visitors to Europe’s borderless Schengen area who are not nationals of EU or Schengen countries. Pictured: Border control officer puts a stamp in the international passport
EES will be an automated IT system for registering travellers from non-EU countries, including the UK, each time they cross a border into or out of the EU.
When it comes into force in October, travellers will need to scan their passports at an automated self-service kiosk prior to crossing the border.
This will replace the current manual stamping of passports for visitors to Europe’s borderless Schengen area who are not nationals of EU or Schengen countries.
The system will register the person’s name, type of travel document, biometric data (such as fingerprints) and the date and place of entry and exit.
It is likely that British travellers will have their fingerprints and facial images taken the first time they cross a border into the EU, once the new system is in operation.
In May, a former borders chief said Britons face even longer waits at EU airports in the coming months.
Tony Smith, who was previously director general of UK Border Force, warned about the looming impact of new entry requirments being imposed by Brussels.
‘If you think the queues are bad now – you ain’t seen nothing yet,’ he said of the EU Entry/Exit System (EES).
His comment came after officials in Brussels were forced to abandon plans to start using it in November last year after EU members, including France, raised significant concern of chaos at crowded borders.
