EES Is Live: The Face Photo and Fingerprints Taken at the Schengen Border

If you enter the Schengen area on a short stay from outside the EU, the border process is different from what it was a year ago. The EU’s Entry/Exit System (EES) replaced passport stamping with a digital record of your face and fingerprints. It has been fully live since 10 April 2026 — and questions about the “EES photo” are now among the most common ones from travellers and visa applicants.

What the EES is, in one paragraph

The European Commission announced that “as of 10 April 2026, the EES will become fully operational”. It records non-EU nationals coming for short stays when they cross the external borders of the 29 participating European countries, at entry and at exit. The system started operating on 12 October 2025 and was introduced progressively; from 10 April 2026 it covers all external border crossing points of the countries using it. It replaces manual stamping of passports with an electronic record.

What is recorded

According to the Commission, the traveller’s facial image, fingerprints and personal data from the travel document are recorded. Per the underlying EU regulation (Regulation (EU) 2017/2226), the entry and exit data also includes the date, place and other details of the crossing.

• Facial image: taken at the border (or at a self-service kiosk where one is provided) at your first crossing.
• Fingerprints: collected from adults. The regulation exempts children under 12 from fingerprinting.
• Travel document data: read from your passport.
• Retention: the regulation sets three years for an entry/exit record, and five years for people who overstay.

Who is affected — and who is not

The EES is for third-country nationals visiting for a short stay. EU citizens are not enrolled. If you have a short-stay Schengen visa or you are visa-exempt for short stays, you are in scope. Holders of residence permits or long-stay visas are not short-stay visitors, so check your own case on the official EES pages before you travel.

Do I need to prepare a photo in advance?

No. The EES photo is not something you upload: it is taken live in front of the camera at the border. The Commission’s wording is simple — you do not need to register beforehand, the enrolment happens on arrival. What you can prepare is practical:

• Time. The first crossing takes longer because everything is captured from scratch. Passport control is slower while the system is being rolled out at busy crossings.
• Your appearance. Remove hats, sunglasses and anything that covers your face. A neutral expression works best for the camera, the same way it does for a passport photo.
• Your passport photo. The image taken at the border is the live one. Still, travel with a passport whose photo looks like you today; an outdated picture is an avoidable source of questions at any border.
• Your visa photo. If you need a Schengen visa first, the visa application still needs its own photo that meets the biometric standard — the EES does not replace it.

EES vs ETIAS: do not mix them up

The EES is already running. ETIAS — the online travel authorisation that visa-exempt travellers will have to apply for — is a separate project. The official EU travel site says the launch date will be announced several months in advance, so any website claiming that ETIAS applications are open today is not something to trust with your passport number.

Practical checklist

1. Arrive earlier than you used to at your first Schengen entry after October 2025.
2. Keep your passport, visa and return ticket at hand — the officer or kiosk may need to see them.
3. Follow the signs to the EES kiosks if the airport has them; otherwise the border officer will take the photo and fingerprints at the booth.
4. If you are applying for a Schengen visa, prepare the 35 x 45 mm biometric photo before your appointment.

If your next step is a visa application, you can make the required photo with our Schengen visa photo tool.