Europe's EES and ETIAS, and the UK's ETA: entry steps for Americans

Three entry steps now stand between an American and a trip to Europe or the UK: the EU’s Entry/Exit System (EES) at the border, its travel authorization (ETIAS) before departure, and the UK’s electronic travel authorization (ETA). Two are in force, and one has not started. This post sets out where each stands as of November 2026.

Each rule below is quoted from the EU’s or the UK’s official page, and the sources list gives the day each page was read; we are not a visa service. This is general information, not travel advice, and it may not be accurate or current. Entry, visa and health rules change often. Always confirm the requirements with the embassy or consulate of your destination and with your airline before you travel.

Where each step stands

The three steps differ in kind. The EES is a check at the border, with nothing to apply for in advance.^{Source 1} The UK’s ETA is an application made before the trip, and airlines refuse to board a traveler who has none.^{Source 2} ETIAS will be an application too, but it has not started: “ETIAS is currently not in operation and no applications for travel authorisations are collected at this point.”^{Source 3}

From the EU’s Travel to Europe portal, Your Europe and GOV.UK,^{Source 4Source 5Source 6Source 7Source 8Source 9Source 10Source 11Source 12Source 13} checked November 2026. These rules change; check the official page before you travel.

The EES: registered at the border

The EES is already running. The Commission “set 12 October 2025 as the launch date for the progressive start of operations of the Entry/Exit System (EES).”^{Source 14} That progressive period ended in the spring: “From 10 April 2026, the EES is fully operational at all external border crossing points of the European countries using the system.”^{Source 6}

It has also ended the passport stamp. The EU’s FAQ puts it this way: “As of 10 April 2026, when the progressive period ends, the manual stamping of passports will be abolished.”^{Source 6}

Where it applies

The EES runs at the external borders of 29 European countries: the Schengen states, including Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway and Switzerland, which are not in the EU.^{Source 4Source 5} Two EU members are not on the list: “In Cyprus and Ireland, despite being countries of the European Union, passports will still be stamped manually.”^{Source 4}

For a nonstop from the US, that list settles where you meet the system. France, the Netherlands, Germany and Switzerland all use it, so a flight to Paris, Amsterdam, Frankfurt or Zurich lands at an EES border. A flight to Dublin still ends with a stamp.

The first crossing, and the later ones

At your first crossing since the EES started, the officers take a photo of your face and/or scan your fingerprints, and “Your passport (biometric or non-biometric) will not be stamped.”^{Source 15} For a traveler exempt from the visa requirement, the EU’s FAQ says: “In this case, the system will store 4 of your fingerprints and your facial image.”^{Source 6} Children give less: “Currently, the fingerprints of children below 12 years old are not scanned”.^{Source 6} The word “currently” is the EU’s own.

Later crossings are shorter. “The passport control officers will only verify your fingerprints and photo”.^{Source 15} Some countries let travelers register their data in advance at self-service kiosks or with a mobile app, “if made available by the country”.^{Source 15}

There is nothing to apply for before the trip. The Commission’s article of April 28, 2026, on the two systems says it plainly: “For the EES, you do not apply in advance.”^{Source 1}

Your 90 days and your passport

The EES also keeps the count. A short stay is up to 90 days in any 180-day period, and “This period is calculated as a single period for all the European countries using the EES.”^{Source 4} A week in France and 3 weeks in Italy count as 4 weeks of the same stay.

The EU publishes its own calculator: “You can check the number of days you are still allowed to stay on the territory of European countries using the EES”.^{Source 16} The same page carries a caveat. The remaining stay it shows does not reflect any time in the Schengen area that began before April 10, 2026.^{Source 16} For a stay that started before that day, the calculator’s figure leaves the earlier days out.

The passport itself has two dates to meet. The EU’s Your Europe page: “Your passport should be valid for at least 3 months after the date you intend to leave the EU and it must have been issued within the last 10 years.”^{Source 5} The same page adds: “Children and minors must have their own passport and visa, if required”.^{Source 5}

Our view: read both dates on every passport in the party before the flights are booked, the children’s included. A passport close to its expiration date is the one to look for.

ETIAS: announced, not started

ETIAS is the step whose date is least settled. As of November 2026, the EU’s portal gives none: “ETIAS is currently not in operation and no applications for travel authorisations are collected at this point.”^{Source 3} It adds: “The European Union will inform about the specific date for the start of ETIAS several months prior to its launch.”^{Source 3}

Earlier EU pages carry an older plan. The Commission’s article of April 28, 2026, said: “ETIAS is scheduled to start in the last quarter of 2026. The exact start date of ETIAS will be officially communicated later this year.”^{Source 1} In November 2026, the portal showed no date, and our search of the EU’s official sites found no announcement of one.

Our view: a start date is official when the EU’s own portal prints it. Until then, the portal’s words are the rule: not in operation.

What it will ask of you

When it starts, ETIAS will apply to travelers who need no visa, and the United States is on the EU’s list of the countries concerned.^{Source 7} It will cover 30 European countries: the 29 that use the EES, plus Cyprus.^{Source 10Source 7} Ireland is on neither list.^{Source 4Source 7}

The fee was raised before the system opened. The EU’s news item of July 21, 2025: “The application fee for an ETIAS travel authorisation will increase to EUR 20 from the previous EUR 7, following an adjustment put forward by the European Commission.”^{Source 8} And: “Applicants who are under 18 or over 70 years of age are exempt from this payment.”^{Source 9} No one can pay it yet, since no applications are collected.^{Source 3}

The EU describes how long an approval lasts: “It is valid for up to three years or until the passport expires, whichever comes first. If you get a new passport, you need to get a new ETIAS travel authorisation.”^{Source 10} On timing, “Most applications are processed within minutes.”^{Source 10} The others get a decision within 4 days, a period that can extend by up to 14 days if more documents are requested, or up to 30 if the applicant is invited to an interview.^{Source 10}

Every traveler applies alone. The EU’s July 2026 note for travel agents says: “Group applications will not be accepted. Each traveller, including children, must submit their applications separately.”^{Source 17} The same note says carriers will check for an ETIAS before boarding, and that a travel agent may apply for a client who signs a declaration of representation.^{Source 17} We do not apply for ETIAS on our clients’ behalf.

The first months after launch

The EU has set out a phased start. “The launch of ETIAS will be followed by a transitional period of at least six months.”^{Source 18} In that period travelers should apply, but are not refused for lack of one.^{Source 18} Then: “The grace period will last at least six months.”^{Source 18} In the grace period an ETIAS is required, with one exception for first-time visitors.^{Source 18}

The EU’s explanation of this timeline is dated February 19, 2025: what it fixes is the length of the two periods, not a start date.^{Source 18}

One official site

The EU is plain about where ETIAS lives: “There is only one official ETIAS website: europa.eu/etias”.^{Source 18} It also warns: “There are many unofficial ETIAS websites. Some falsely claim to accept ETIAS applications or may charge higher fees.”^{Source 17} Since the EU collects no applications yet, a site that takes one today is not the EU’s.^{Source 3}

The UK’s ETA: required and enforced

The UK is not on the EES list, and London has its own step.^{Source 4} GOV.UK announced it on November 27, 2024: “From today all eligible non-European visitors can apply for an ETA and will need one to travel to the UK from 8 January 2025.”^{Source 11}

Enforcement tightened on February 25, 2026. GOV.UK’s notice of the day before said: “Visitors of 85 nationalities, including nationals of the United States, Canada and France, are now legally required to have an ETA”. It added that “airlines will prevent passengers from boarding if they do not have an ETA, eVisa or have other valid documentation.”^{Source 2}

The fee, and how long it lasts

GOV.UK’s ETA page is short on this point: “An ETA costs £20.”^{Source 12} The fee has risen twice. GOV.UK gave it as £10 at the launch in November 2024 and as £16 in its notice of February 2026,^{Source 11Source 2} and the Home Office fees table of April 8, 2026, lists £20, up from £16.^{Source 19} It is not refundable: “You cannot get a refund after you apply”.^{Source 13}

“An ETA lasts for 2 years or until your passport expires, whichever is sooner.”^{Source 13} It covers more than one trip, and “lets you travel to the UK, Jersey, Guernsey or the Isle of Man for up to 6 months.”^{Source 12}

Every traveler, children included

GOV.UK leaves no room on this: “Each person travelling needs an ETA, including babies and children.”^{Source 12} One person can apply for others, through the UK ETA app or online.^{Source 12Source 13} “You’ll usually get a decision by email within a day, but it can take up to 3 working days.”^{Source 13}

Our view: for a family, apply for every traveler at once, and well ahead of the 3 working days a decision can take. Airlines check each passenger before boarding.^{Source 2}

Changing planes, and dual citizens

A connection can need an ETA too. GOV.UK lists, among the cases that need none: “you’re transiting through a UK airport without passing through border control (airside)”.^{Source 20} The other side of the rule is on its main page: “You need an ETA if you’re passing through border control at a UK airport before continuing your onward journey.”^{Source 12}

Dual citizens are a case apart. “If you’re a dual citizen with British or Irish citizenship, you cannot get an ETA.”^{Source 20} They travel on their British or Irish passport, or with a certificate of entitlement.^{Source 20}

Lookalike sites

GOV.UK warns about these in so many words: “Other websites may charge more to apply. Avoid websites that imitate government services.”^{Source 12} It also says that applying through another site does not bring a faster decision.^{Source 13}

One trip, three steps: London, Paris, Rome

The steps stack on a multi-country trip. Take a journey from New York to London, on to Paris and Rome, and home from Rome.

• London. Each traveler, babies and children included, needs an approved UK ETA before the flight from New York, and the airline checks it before boarding.^{Source 12Source 2}
• Paris. France uses the EES and the UK does not, so the flight from London lands at an EES border.^{Source 4} At a first crossing, the officers record the face image and, for a traveler who needs no visa, 4 fingerprints (children under 12 are currently not fingerprinted); the passport is not stamped.^{Source 15Source 6}
• Rome. Italy uses the EES too, and the days in France and Italy count as one stay toward the 90.^{Source 4} The flight home crosses the external border again: a later crossing, where the officers verify the fingerprints and photo.^{Source 15}
• ETIAS, once it starts. One authorization will cover France and Italy, both on its list, for up to 3 years or until the passport expires.^{Source 7Source 10} As of November 2026, there is nothing to apply for.^{Source 3}

If the trip only changes planes in London on the way to Paris, and stays airside without passing border control, GOV.UK’s transit exception applies and that leg needs no ETA.^{Source 20} Our United Kingdom and Italy pages list each country’s gateway airports.

Elsewhere: Korea, Israel, Thailand, Japan

Europe and the UK are not the only places with a step of this kind. For trips to Seoul, Jerusalem, Bangkok and Tokyo, here is where each stood in November 2026.

From the Korean embassy in the US, Israel’s mission in Houston, Thailand’s Immigration Bureau and Japan’s Ministry of Justice,^{Source 21Source 22Source 23Source 24} checked November 2026. The K-ETA waiver ends on December 31, 2026, unless Korea extends it; check the official page before you travel.

The Korean exemption is dated: “the exemption will be effective until December 31, 2026 (KST).”^{Source 21} Israel’s rule reads: “as of the 1st of January 2025, nationals of visa-exempt countries must have an ETA-IL approval prior to their flight to Israel.”^{Source 22} Thailand’s manual says: “Foreigners are required to submit their arrival card information 3 days in advance of their arrival date in Thailand.”^{Source 23} Japan’s JESTA is a plan, not yet a rule: “Aim to introduce JESTA in FY2028”.^{Source 24}

Where to apply, and where not to

Each step has one official home. As of November 2026:

• ETIAS: the EU’s ETIAS portal, which collects no applications yet.^{Source 3}
• EES: nothing to apply for. The EU’s stay calculator counts the days.^{Source 16}
• UK ETA: GOV.UK’s ETA page, or the UK ETA app.^{Source 12Source 13}

Our view: the official pages are short, plain and current, and they are the only ones that can state the rule on the day you fly. A site that charges more, or takes an ETIAS application before the EU does, is not the government’s. Check the official page before you travel.

Once every passport in the party meets the EU’s two dates, our London, Paris and Rome pages carry the routes for the trip above, and how booking with us works sets out our steps.