If there was one small perk that came out of Brexit, it’s that we got passport stamps back. The inky marks are badges of honour for travellers everywhere and finally Brits were able to have good old-fashioned physical proof of our European getaways. Added to passports at border control, they log entry and exit dates to prove that visitors haven’t stayed over their visa-free limit of 90 days within a 180-day period.
Unfortunately, the return of stamps is short-lived. In November, they will be replaced by a digitised automated entry and exit system (EES) in self-service kiosks for non-EU travellers.
Brits travelling into EU countries including France and Spain will have to register their name, travel document, fingerprints, facial images and the date and place of entry and exit. This data will be removed three years after a person’s last trip to a country using the system.
The switch-up comes as Eurostar trains are running a third empty due to delays at border control and staff being unable to stamp documents quickly enough. A statement from the European Commission department for migration and home affairs read: ‘EES will replace the current system of manual stamping of passports, which is time-consuming, does not provide reliable data on border crossings and does not allow a systematic detection of overstayers.’
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