Europe’s repeatedly-delayed EES Entry-Exit System may be getting yet another delay, with France asking the EU to postpone the start date from “by the end of 2023” to a date after the 2024 Olympics.
The EES system, designed to track when non-EU travelers arrive and to enforce the limit of 90 days visiting within 180 days, was originally supposed to take effect in 2020, but has been delayed by pandemic issues and by technical issues. France is concerned that implementing it before the Olympics could lead to delays and confusion at airports and other entries into the EU.
The system will require a first-time registration from each visitor once it goes into effect, a process estimated to take ten minutes—once the traveler has waited in line to get to the registration counter, which could lead to serious backups when large numbers of people arrive at once, as is expected for the Olympics.
