Date confirmed for new £6 ETIAS permit required to travel across Europe

dailyrecord.co.uk:

Officials in Europe have confirmed the date the European Travel Information and Authorisation System (ETIAS) will come into effect.UK citizens will be required to register for an ETIAS to enter certain European countries, regardless of business or tourism, reports Wales Online.This travel authorisation pass is a requirement for visa-exempt nationals travelling to 30 different European countries.Tourists heading to places like Spain, France, Italy and Portugal will soon need an ETIAS to visit, and it could take around 30 days to process once it comes into effect.The Council of the European Union this week confirmed that the initial start date of 2024 will not happen due to technical issues with the equipment.

The start date has officially been pushed back until 2025, and won't go live until May of that year. Website SchengenVisaInfo.com reported that an EU official said: "We had initially hoped for the EES to become operational by the end of this year or, at the latest, the beginning of the next year. "Due to unforeseen delays, it has become evident that this timeline is unattainable.

As a result, the implementation of the ETIAS has been rescheduled to May 2025, with the possibility of further postponement."The EU Council said: "The new roadmap for the delivery of the new IT architecture foresees that the Entry/Exit system will be ready to enter into operation in Autumn 2024 and that ETIAS will be ready to enter into operation in Spring 2025."Last month, the EU noted that 'unforeseen delays' for the ETIAS meant that it had to be rescheduled for May 2025, with the potential for it to be delayed even further.Once ETIAS becomes operational, citizens of more than 60 countries who do not need a visa to enter the bloc will have