The countries of the European Union (EU) Since last Sunday, they began to introduce a new electronic control system at their borders that will end in less than a year, replacing the stamping of passports for non-EU citizens.
According to a report from the agency Efethe so-called Entry and Exit System (SES) will allow, among other advantages, to detect people who exceed short-term stays, as well as cases of document and identity fraud.
The entry/exit system is live as of 12 October 2025!
Boosting border security, tracking visa overstayers and speeding up controls at EU borders.
For smarter, safer travel! https://t.co/Ejupa5OeBi
— EU Council (@EUCouncil) October 14, 2025
During the first stage of progressive deployment of the technological tool, which will last six months, Member States will be able to decide when and at which border crossings they will begin to apply the system.
From April 10, 2026, the SES must be deployed at all border crossings and passport stamping will be replaced by electronic records for citizens who do not belong to the 29 Member States of the Schengen area (all those of the European Union, except Cyprus and Ireland, as well as Norway, Switzerland, Iceland and Liechtenstein).
The system will serve to electronically record the data of third-country citizens traveling to the EU for short-term stays (90 days, in a period of 180 days).
At the border crossings where it began to be implemented, passport data, biometric data (facial image and fingerprints) and entry or exit data of foreigners are already included.
Data protection, privacy and effectiveness
The EU has confirmed prior to its implementation that the new system “meets the highest standards of data protection and privacy”, ensuring that travelers’ personal data remains protected and secure.
If you travel to Europe this information is important!
Entry/Exit System (EES):
•Replaces the physical stamping of the passport.
•It is not a visa
•It does not represent a new entry requirement for Mexican people.
•Will record biometric data pic.twitter.com/JETIrgFDIR— Consulmex Milan (@ConsulMexMIL) October 14, 2025
The system stores the document data, the passenger’s entry and exit, date, time, whether they enter or are rejected at the border, and sends the information to a common database that can be consulted by all Member States of the Schengen area.
The immigration authorities also highlight the importance of implementing the new method that with the previous one, a lot of time is spent checking each foreigner upon entry to the Member States.
At the same time, it did not provide reliable data on border crossings, nor did it allow for the systematic detection of people who had exceeded the maximum duration of their authorized stay.
Two days, 100 thousand records
The European Commission valued this Tuesday the good implementation of the new electronic border control system, which has allowed more than 100 thousand people to be registered in just two days of validity.
In Spain, a country that serves as an entrance to the EU for thousands of foreigners, the SES was applied for the first time at the Adolfo Suárez Madrid-Barajas airport, between 6:00 am and 10:00 am last Sunday.
“The system showed its stability and effectiveness during the progressive connection period, without delays or delays to the traveler, with passage times even shorter than usual,” said Fernando Grande-Marlaska, head of the Interior portfolio in Spain, upon his arrival at a Council of European Ministers of the sector, according to Efe.
For his part, the European Commissioner for Migration, Magnus Brunner, said that the implementation of this entry and exit system is a “milestone in our new approach to border management.”
“It allows us to know who enters and leaves the EU, when and where. This marks an important milestone in strengthening our internal security. The new system will facilitate the identification of irregular migrants and the return of those who do not have the right to remain in the EU,” he stated.
