Scheme file · Europe — Schengen area

EES

Entry/Exit System

Do I need to apply for EES?
No. There is nothing to apply for and no fee.

EES is a border system, not a permit. Your fingerprints and a facial image are taken the first time you cross an external Schengen border, and after that your entries and exits are recorded automatically.

What it changes is not the paperwork but the counting: the 90-days-in-180 limit is now measured by the system rather than by a stamp someone has to read.

Checked against the issuing government's own pages on 14 August 2026.

What is confirmed

Every field below traces to a government page, read on 14 August 2026.

FeeNo fee
ValidityNot applicable
Stay permitted90 days in any 180
Who needs itAll non-EU travellers on short stays. Nothing to apply for
ProcessingRegistered at the border
Worth knowingFully operational at every external Schengen crossing since 10 April 2026, after a phased start in October 2025. It records your face and fingerprints at the border and counts your days for you.

What's wrong out there

Figures that circulate widely and are not supported by the official pages.

Commonly got wrongEES is not a permit and there is no EES fee — it is routinely confused with ETIAS, which is a separate scheme that has not launched. If a site wants to charge you for EES, it is selling nothing.

Where to check it yourself

Europe — Schengen area — EES ↗

How these figures are checked →