Overview

• The Entry/Exit System went live on 12 October with equipment outages at Prague’s airport forcing manual processing and lengthy queues before kiosks were restored.
• Non‑EU travelers aged 12 and over must enroll fingerprints, a facial image and passport data on first entry, with records stored for three years at no cost.
• Prague Airport has warned of longer waits at border control for non‑EU nationals as initial operations stabilize.
• Most Schengen states are activating the system gradually through March 2026, while the Czech Republic, Estonia and Luxembourg switched on from day one.
• The kiosk step precedes the regular passport check, adding time during the rollout, and the EU plans the separate ETIAS pre‑travel authorization for late 2026 with a €20 fee.