The EU Commission has announced that the new automated checks soon to become effective at the borders of the EU, will facilitate travel for all travellers from the United Kingdom, reducing queues and waiting time at ports and airports.
This was announced not long after the British Prime Minister, Rishi Sunak, said that the UK government wants to make a deal with the EU to make travel easier to the bloc for Britons, as reported by SchengenVisaInfo.com.
Currently, all British travellers from the UK need to have their passports manually stamped when entering any EU member state, and go through the checks in Border Control for non-EU citizens, which in most cases has longer waiting times due to the procedures that need to be completed.
In order to make travel to the EU easier for all citizens, Sunak said earlier this week that he is planning to ask them to let Britons pass through the EU e-gates for passport checks, and follow the example set by Portugal and Spain who allow Brits to be able to enter their territory by using e-gates instead of going through regular checks intended for third-country travellers.
While the UK is pushing for the EU countries to facilitate the travel rules for Brits, a formal approach about a deal between the UK and EU to open up passport e-gates for Britons is unlikely to happen until the Entry/Exit System (EES) goes live, which has been postponed again.
The next date for the launch of EES is believed to be May 2024, however, there is also the possibility of the system being postponed until later next year after the summer Olympics set to be held in France between July 26th and August 11th are over.
