The European Commission has reiterated that the European Travel Information and Authorisation System (ETIAS) will go live in the fourth quarter of 2026, with enforcement from April 2027. Travellers from more than 60 visa-exempt nations—including the US, UK and Canada—will have to secure €20 online authorisation before visiting any of the 30 participating states, Poland included.
ETIAS will sit atop the biometric Entry/Exit System (EES) that Poland began rolling out at major airports and land crossings in late 2025, replacing passport stamps with automated risk profiling and overstay alerts. Polish airports plan to open dedicated ETIAS lanes, but airlines will deny boarding to passengers who lack approval.
![ETIAS Countdown: Brussels Confirms Late-2026 Launch—What Polish-Bound Travellers Must Do Now]()
For organisations looking to streamline the process, VisaHQ’s Poland hub (https://www.visahq.com/poland/) already monitors ETIAS launch milestones and will offer end-to-end support—from automated reminders and document checks to API integrations that feed approval numbers directly into corporate booking or HR systems—helping travel managers stay compliant without adding administrative burden.
Corporate travel teams should update booking tools to capture ETIAS numbers alongside passport data and brief frequent flyers that the authorisation remains valid for three years or until the passport expires. Assignment letters and invitation templates will need tweaks so that applicants can copy exact employer addresses into the ETIAS form—errors trigger auto-rejections.
Early movers can already test the workflow on the EU’s pre-production portal; travel-management companies expect bulk-application APIs to be available by mid-2026, easing high-volume filings for global mobility programmes.
ETIAS will sit atop the biometric Entry/Exit System (EES) that Poland began rolling out at major airports and land crossings in late 2025, replacing passport stamps with automated risk profiling and overstay alerts. Polish airports plan to open dedicated ETIAS lanes, but airlines will deny boarding to passengers who lack approval.
For organisations looking to streamline the process, VisaHQ’s Poland hub (https://www.visahq.com/poland/) already monitors ETIAS launch milestones and will offer end-to-end support—from automated reminders and document checks to API integrations that feed approval numbers directly into corporate booking or HR systems—helping travel managers stay compliant without adding administrative burden.
Corporate travel teams should update booking tools to capture ETIAS numbers alongside passport data and brief frequent flyers that the authorisation remains valid for three years or until the passport expires. Assignment letters and invitation templates will need tweaks so that applicants can copy exact employer addresses into the ETIAS form—errors trigger auto-rejections.
Early movers can already test the workflow on the EU’s pre-production portal; travel-management companies expect bulk-application APIs to be available by mid-2026, easing high-volume filings for global mobility programmes.
