Berlin Brandenburg Airport (BER) has become Germany’s first major hub to move from pilot to live operation of the EU Entry/Exit System (EES), installing 60 self-service kiosks that pre-register third-country nationals’ fingerprints, facial image and passport data. Travellers complete the biometric capture in under two minutes before proceeding to a Federal Police officer for a final check, replacing the decades-old passport-stamp routine. ([visahq.com](https://www.visahq.com/news/2026-01-04/de/berlin-brandenburg-rolls-out-self-service-kiosks-for-eu-entryexit-system/))
EES stores each crossing in a central EU database, automatically calculating the remaining days under the 90/180-day Schengen rule and flagging overstays. For visa-free business travellers from the United States, UK and beyond, the change means zero tolerance for “back-to-back” trips that used to slip under the radar when stamps were illegible or missing. ([visahq.com](https://www.visahq.com/news/2026-01-04/de/berlin-brandenburg-rolls-out-self-service-kiosks-for-eu-entryexit-system/))
![Berlin Brandenburg Airport begins live Entry/Exit System with self-service kiosks]()
To avoid being caught out by the stricter Schengen day counts, travellers and corporate mobility teams can tap VisaHQ’s dedicated Germany portal (https://www.visahq.com/germany/) for real-time stay calculators, ETIAS updates and end-to-end visa support—ensuring compliance is locked in well before passengers step up to BER’s new kiosks.
During the first week, queues have been moderate, but the Federal Police predict bottlenecks as Easter traffic builds. Companies are circulating BER’s walk-through video and reminding mobile staff to remove hats and scarves for the facial scan. Crew schedulers are also advising rotating personnel to carry old passports as proof of historic entries for tax compliance. ([visahq.com](https://www.visahq.com/news/2026-01-04/de/berlin-brandenburg-rolls-out-self-service-kiosks-for-eu-entryexit-system/))
Germany aims to finish nationwide deployment by 10 April 2026, ahead of the paid ETIAS travel-authorisation scheme due later in the year. Mobility teams should update pre-trip briefs, anticipate longer connection times and ensure duty-of-care systems capture the new exit data, which can be used to verify actual time spent in country for payroll and immigration reporting. ([visahq.com](https://www.visahq.com/news/2026-01-04/de/berlin-brandenburg-rolls-out-self-service-kiosks-for-eu-entryexit-system/))
EES stores each crossing in a central EU database, automatically calculating the remaining days under the 90/180-day Schengen rule and flagging overstays. For visa-free business travellers from the United States, UK and beyond, the change means zero tolerance for “back-to-back” trips that used to slip under the radar when stamps were illegible or missing. ([visahq.com](https://www.visahq.com/news/2026-01-04/de/berlin-brandenburg-rolls-out-self-service-kiosks-for-eu-entryexit-system/))
To avoid being caught out by the stricter Schengen day counts, travellers and corporate mobility teams can tap VisaHQ’s dedicated Germany portal (https://www.visahq.com/germany/) for real-time stay calculators, ETIAS updates and end-to-end visa support—ensuring compliance is locked in well before passengers step up to BER’s new kiosks.
During the first week, queues have been moderate, but the Federal Police predict bottlenecks as Easter traffic builds. Companies are circulating BER’s walk-through video and reminding mobile staff to remove hats and scarves for the facial scan. Crew schedulers are also advising rotating personnel to carry old passports as proof of historic entries for tax compliance. ([visahq.com](https://www.visahq.com/news/2026-01-04/de/berlin-brandenburg-rolls-out-self-service-kiosks-for-eu-entryexit-system/))
Germany aims to finish nationwide deployment by 10 April 2026, ahead of the paid ETIAS travel-authorisation scheme due later in the year. Mobility teams should update pre-trip briefs, anticipate longer connection times and ensure duty-of-care systems capture the new exit data, which can be used to verify actual time spent in country for payroll and immigration reporting. ([visahq.com](https://www.visahq.com/news/2026-01-04/de/berlin-brandenburg-rolls-out-self-service-kiosks-for-eu-entryexit-system/))
