The new rules for Australian passport holders in Europe

At some date in 2025, Australian passport holders will need an ETIAS Travel Authorisation to enter the EU, but don’t hold your breath. The ETIAS program was approved in 2016 with a proposed start-up date of 2020. Since then, it’s been postponed, delayed and shoved on the back burner – year after year.

In 2022 EU authorities charged with implementing the scheme changed the start date to 2023, then 2024, and now we have a commencement date of 2025. It’s got to be like the boy who cried “wolf”, but this time, “really, honestly, scouts’ honour, this time it’s gonna happen”, the EU authorities promise.

All going to plan, you’ll need an ETIAS Travel Authorisation before landing in Europe from next year.Credit: iStock

What is ETIAS?

ETIAS – the European Travel Information and Authorisation System – is a visa waiver system for those visitors whose countries are not part of the EU. Some nationalities will still require a visa to enter the Schengen Zone (29 European countries with freedom of movement between them), but Australia is one of about 60 countries that are deemed a low-level threat to the safety and security of the region and its people, and therefore we qualify for the ETIAS.

Applying for an ETIAS can only be done online, and it’s straightforward. Access the official ETIAS website (travel-europe.europa.eu/etias_en) or download the ETIAS app, which is – surprise – currently under construction. Complete the application form, pay the fee of €7 ($11.50), submit your application and await an email confirming the outcome. Applicants under 18 or over 70 pay no application fee.

Once granted, the passport holder has the right to enter and remain in the countries of the Schengen Zone plus most of Europe’s non-Schengen countries and microstates, such as Andorra and Monaco, for up to 90 days in any 180-day period.

Apart from a few Balkan countries such as Serbia, the ETIAS covers all of continental Europe plus the Nordic countries. Once approved, an ETIAS is valid for three years, or until the passport expires. During that time, passport holders can make multiple entries into the Schengen Zone.

Beware of fake websites masquerading as official ETIAS websites. They’re scammers; they’ll charge more than the official fee, and once you hand over your credit card details, you open yourself up to possible fraud.

Adieu, adios, auf wiedersehen to passport stamps

Another change that Australians will see at EU airports – passport stamps will soon become a memory. Due to launch on November 10, 2024, the EU Entry/Exit System (EES) is an automated IT system for registering travellers from third countries who are visa exempt or hold short-stay visas. When one of those passport holders crosses an EU external border, either entering or leaving, the EES system will register their name, type of travel document, biometric data and the date and place of entry and exit.

On their first entry after the introduction of the EES, non-EU citizens will have their fingerprints scanned and image recorded, supervised by an EU official. Those details will stay on file for three years to facilitate subsequent visits.

Rather than a paper trail in the form of passport stamps in your passport, there will be an electronic footprint, which, according to EU authorities, will improve security in the EU. Since this is a self-service system, it should make it quicker for eligible travellers to enter the EU. If that does away with the long immigration processing lines that incoming travellers frequently encounter at airports such as Hamburg and Paris’ Charles de Gaulle, bring it on.

Another advantage, the EES makes it simpler for Australian passport holders to leave the EU and visit a non-Schengen Zone country without impacting on the 90 days we’re allowed to spend in the zone. Until the EES comes into effect, Australians wanting to spend longer than 90 days in Europe would often leave the Schengen Zone after a couple of months, spend some time in the UK or Ireland and then return to the Schengen Zone until the remainder of their 90 days in the zone is exhausted. This requires having their passport stamped on exit to prove they’ve left the zone. Without that, the clock would keep ticking, running down their 90-day entitlement. With the implementation of the EES, it should now be a simple matter for the system to recognise when someone has left the EU and for how long.