The European Commission on 4 December 2025 formally approved a six-month rollout timetable for the long-delayed Entry/Exit System (EES), the automated border-management platform that will replace passport stamping for short-stay non-EU travellers. All Schengen member states will begin registering fingerprints and facial images at external borders from 12 October, with full coverage required by mid-April 2026.
Germany—alongside the Netherlands—voiced concern during the vote, warning that its busiest airports (Frankfurt, Munich) and land crossings lack sufficient live-testing. The Interior Ministry said it needs “clear contingency protocols” to avoid queues that could cripple holiday and trade flows; more than 100 million arrivals are processed annually through German borders. The Commission promised an EU-wide public-information campaign and extra funding for kiosks and staff training.
![EU Sets 12 October 2025 Start for Biometric Entry/Exit System; Germany Flags Operational Risks]()
At the same time, Brussels unveiled a proposal for digital travel documents stored on travellers’ smartphones via an “EU Digital Travel” app. Vice-President Věra Jourová argued that digitisation would shorten border times once EES teething problems are resolved. Member states must still negotiate data-protection safeguards, with Germany’s federal data-protection commissioner already calling for strict access controls.
Multinational employers should prepare travellers for dual changes: mandatory biometric capture on first entry after 12 October 2025, and the likely phasing-in of smartphone-based document wallets later in the decade. Travel managers should budget extra time for airport transits this winter and spring, and update privacy notices because biometric templates will be retained for three years. HR teams moving staff on short-stay Schengen visas should remind assignees that overstays will now be calculated automatically—a feature expected to trigger more overstay fines.
German airports are accelerating procurement of EES kiosks, but unions caution that staffing shortages could persist into the Christmas peak. Contingency plans such as shifting connecting passengers onto airside transit routes without border clearance are being explored.
Germany—alongside the Netherlands—voiced concern during the vote, warning that its busiest airports (Frankfurt, Munich) and land crossings lack sufficient live-testing. The Interior Ministry said it needs “clear contingency protocols” to avoid queues that could cripple holiday and trade flows; more than 100 million arrivals are processed annually through German borders. The Commission promised an EU-wide public-information campaign and extra funding for kiosks and staff training.
At the same time, Brussels unveiled a proposal for digital travel documents stored on travellers’ smartphones via an “EU Digital Travel” app. Vice-President Věra Jourová argued that digitisation would shorten border times once EES teething problems are resolved. Member states must still negotiate data-protection safeguards, with Germany’s federal data-protection commissioner already calling for strict access controls.
Multinational employers should prepare travellers for dual changes: mandatory biometric capture on first entry after 12 October 2025, and the likely phasing-in of smartphone-based document wallets later in the decade. Travel managers should budget extra time for airport transits this winter and spring, and update privacy notices because biometric templates will be retained for three years. HR teams moving staff on short-stay Schengen visas should remind assignees that overstays will now be calculated automatically—a feature expected to trigger more overstay fines.
German airports are accelerating procurement of EES kiosks, but unions caution that staffing shortages could persist into the Christmas peak. Contingency plans such as shifting connecting passengers onto airside transit routes without border clearance are being explored.
