In a move that could transform how travellers enter the Schengen Area, EU ministers on 29 November adopted a negotiating mandate for a voluntary digital travel application that will let passengers upload passport data before arrival. The mobile app – part of a three-component system built by EU-LISA – will pre-screen travellers, cutting queue times and allowing border guards to focus on higher-risk cases.
For Belgium, which handles more than 19 million Schengen and external-border crossings a year at Brussels Airport, the technology promises shorter lines at peak periods and smoother transfers for connecting flights. Federal Interior Minister Annelies Verlinden said Belgium’s border police will join the first pilot group “to ensure seamless integration with the Entry/Exit System (EES) that went live in October.”
![EU Green-Lights Digital Travel App to Speed Schengen Borders – What It Means for Belgium]()
The digital credentials could also be linked to ETIAS, the electronic travel-authorisation scheme due in 2026. Travel-management companies expect the combined systems to slash document-check times by up to 40 % – a boon for Belgian corporates whose assignees often transit multiple EU capitals in one trip.
Privacy advocates note the app remains optional and that physical documents will still be inspected. Nonetheless, employers must update data-protection impact assessments because staff could be asked to store personal biometric information on third-party devices.
Roll-out details are pending agreement with the European Parliament, but Brussels Airport Company says it will install additional e-gates and dedicate one Smart Border lane per pier as soon as the software specifications are finalised in 2026.
For Belgium, which handles more than 19 million Schengen and external-border crossings a year at Brussels Airport, the technology promises shorter lines at peak periods and smoother transfers for connecting flights. Federal Interior Minister Annelies Verlinden said Belgium’s border police will join the first pilot group “to ensure seamless integration with the Entry/Exit System (EES) that went live in October.”
The digital credentials could also be linked to ETIAS, the electronic travel-authorisation scheme due in 2026. Travel-management companies expect the combined systems to slash document-check times by up to 40 % – a boon for Belgian corporates whose assignees often transit multiple EU capitals in one trip.
Privacy advocates note the app remains optional and that physical documents will still be inspected. Nonetheless, employers must update data-protection impact assessments because staff could be asked to store personal biometric information on third-party devices.
Roll-out details are pending agreement with the European Parliament, but Brussels Airport Company says it will install additional e-gates and dedicate one Smart Border lane per pier as soon as the software specifications are finalised in 2026.
