EU confirms 180-day launch schedule for biometric border system

The European Union has confirmed that the bloc’s new biometric Entry/Exit System (EES) will begin a progressive launch, in a development promising an end to a streak of four pushed-back launch dates.

The start of operations was approved by European Parliament this week, with a vote of 572 to 42, with 67 abstentions. The approval sets a deadline of 180 days to begin the rollout, with the intention of avoiding a bottleneck that could compromise the system if all countries were to launch simultaneously.

Additional biometrics and biographic data collection from people visiting the EU as they cross its external borders is expected to reduce violations of entry rules while speeding up border processing. It could lead to delays in the short-term, however, border officials in several countries have warned. Notable among them is England, where self-serve face and fingerprint biometric kiosks are rolling out to prepare for the system’s launch.

A ”Travel to Europe” app developed by iProov and Inverid for biometric pre-registration may alleviate any anticipated space crunch, and will be used at Sweden’s Arlanda Airport when the system goes live this autumn.

Once the EES deployment period begins, 10 percent of border crossings are expected to be registered with the system within 30 days. The next 25 percent should be registered within 90 days, and all should be registered on day 170. EU member states do not have to wait to deploy the system, however, meaning in theory it could be finished ahead of the deadline.

The plan also allows for launches to be temporarily paused during the deployment period if waits at border crossings become too long or technical problems are discovered.

Eu-LISA will have 30 days to develop a deployment plan, and countries have 60 days to develop a national plan.

The EES law will enter into force three days after publication in the Official Journal of the EU, but that step awaits the formal adoption of the law by the Council of the EU. The Council agreed on law’s final form with the Parliament in May, however, so that approval should be a formality.

Meanwhile Sopra Steria and the Schengen Information System II it maintains are facing questions over cybersecurity ahead of an expanded role under the EES.

Article Topics

biometric identification  |  biometrics  |  border security  |  Entry/Exit System (EES)  |  Europe  |  legislation