Only certain Eurostar passengers are currently being selected to use the new EES system (Picture: Getty Images)
It’s been just four days since the new Entry-Exit system (EES) began rolling out across the European Union and there have already been some big changes.
EES is a digital system at border control that replaces passport stamping and all people from non-EU countries (including the UK) are required to use it.
To do so,you register passport details and biometric data like fingerprints and photos at a self-service kiosk when crossing into an EU country for the first time. This data is then stored for three years and only verification is required for subsequent visits.
At the kiosks,travellers are also asked four questions covering topics such as where they’ll be staying during the trip,if they have a return ticket,whether they have sufficient funds for the duration of the trip and if they have medical insurance.
However,passengers travelling from the UK on the Eurostar will no longer have to answer these questions.
The new EES system uses kiosks to collect biometric data such as fingerprints (Picture: JUSTIN TALLIS/AFP via Getty Images)
A total of 49 kiosks have been installed at St Pancras International Station for the EES rollout and they were all originally programmed to ask all four questions.
Travellers who answered ‘no’ to any of these faced being questioned by frontier police,which raised concerns about delays and people being being denied boarding.
But this isn’t something customers need to worry about for the next six months,as Simon Lejeune,chief stations and safety officer for Eurostar has confirmed the questions have been dropped for now.
He told the House of Lords Justice and Home Affairs Committee: ‘We know those questions have caused significant confusion,particularly within the kiosk process.
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‘We’re very pleased that,through discussions with the French ministry and our colleagues,it’s been agreed that those questions can be technically removed from the kiosks during the initial six-month introduction phase of the new system.’
Currently only a few passengers at St Pancras and Paris Gare du Nord are being selected to use the new EES sytem and these are mostly business travellers.
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Simon added that so far these assesments have taken ’50 seconds’ to complete and this time includes full biometrics and passport checks.
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