Say goodbye to passport stamps. For many years, many travelers have enjoyed the moment when a border officer stamped their passport: that noise, that little stamp with ink; they were the beginning or the end of an adventure. Every passport stamp was a physical memory of the places people visited, but I’m afraid if you are one of those who love passport stamps, you won’t get any of them anymore very soon.
Europe is ready to remove passport stamps from 2025. From that moment, border controls will completely change: no more ink, but digital and biometric technology. So, let’s find out more about this.
A new era
From October 12 of 2025, the European Union will start a new system called Entry/Exit System (EES) to replace traditional stamps for electronic registers. This means no more stamping your passport, instead border officers will register your data through fingerprints and a picture.
The system will automatically save the exact date and time you enter or leave the Schengen Area. And, even though at the beginning we will have both methods, from April 2026 passport stamps will disappear 100% from every European border.
This means that, if you are traveling around Europe after this date, your passport won’t have any stamps anymore.
Why are passport stamps disappearing?
The European Union explains that stamps are an obsolete system full of mistakes. Sometimes the dates get erased, the stamps get mixed, or they are just simply difficult to read. This makes it so hard to know how many days you have been in the European territory.
So, with this new digital system, everything will be automatic and exact and it will know exactly when you entered and when you left. What’s more, it will apply the popular ‘’90 days in 180’’ rule, which is the maximum time a traveler could stay in the Schengen Area.
Do you know what’s something else positive about this change? You won’t have to wait so much at border controls and they will be more organized.
Where this new system will be applied
This change will be implemented in 29 countries that belong to the Schengen Area, including: Spain, France, Germany, Italy, Portugal, the Netherlands, the Nordic Nations, and countries in Eastern Europe.
Also, some non-European countries that are part of the Schengen zone will join this system: Island, Liechtenstein, Norway, and Switzerland.
However, there are 2 important exceptions: Ireland and Chirpe. They will keep using the traditional passport stamps since they don’t belong to the Schengen Area.
Europe following other countries’ steps
Although this change might seem very modern, Europe is actually keeping up with other countries that have already adopted similar systems.
For example, in the United States has been using for so long the I-94 system, which electronically registers the entries and exists. Then, in the U.K., travelers use eGates, automatic doors that read your passport data and your face, along with the new ETA system.
More countries, like Australia, New Zealand, Singapore, and the United Arab Emirates have left traditional passport stamps behind and now they completely depend on biometric registers.
What changes for passengers?
From 2025, when you travel to Europe you won’t get any stamp on your passport. Some people think these stamps were a beautiful memory, but authorities have confirmed they won’t be able to ask for them as a souvenir.
So, if you are one of those who collect passport stamps as a memory of your trips, you’d better start looking for new ways to do that. Maybe you can keep your boarding passes, postcards, or even buy souvenir-style stamps (just for decoration). I mean, they won’t be officially valid, but they will still be symbols of your adventures.
We are having many changes at the airports, but what do you think about this one?
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