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What the EU’s New Entry/Exit System (EES) Means for Your Mobile Workforce

Published: 05 February 2026
Sirva Communications

Long-awaited changes to border protection procedures for travel to the European Union/Schengen Area are going into effect in April 2026. What does this mean for your mobility programme and your mobile employees?

What is the European Entry/Exit System and what is changing?

Beginning 10 April 2026, the European Union’s Entry/Exit System (EES) will be in place at all external borders of the 29 Schengen-area countries. Manual passport stamping for most non-EU short-stay visitors will be replaced by a digital system that records each traveller’s entry and exit and becomes the official proof of legal stay. Travellers who arrive at the Schengen border may be asked to provide biometric data (such as facial image and fingerprints). The travel document details will be stored together with entry/exit records.

Who is affected?

These new border protection procedures apply mainly to non-EU nationals travelling to the Schengen area for short stays. Short stays are defined as visits of up to 90 days within any 180-day period, whether the non-EU national needs a short-stay visa or are visa-exempt.

EU citizens, family members of EU citizens travelling with residence rights, or individuals holding long-stay visas or national residence permits (for work, study, or family reasons) are generally not covered by the EES. For these traveller groups, the current procedures will remain in place.

What does this mean for you and your relocating employees?

For individual travellers and family members:

  • Allow for extra time at airports and land borders, especially in the months after EES goes live, as the system and processes are still acclimating.
  • Carefully monitor the number of days spent in the Schengen area to not exceed 90 days in the 180-day limit. Overstays will be recorded by the new system and may impact future travel or immigration applications.

For employers, HR, and global mobility teams:

  • Review your travel and global mobility policies to ensure they align with the new border-control environment and that mobile employees are prepared in advance.
  • Consider allocating additional time into your employee business traveller itineraries to/within Europe to account for potential delays and the new biometric steps that may be required at the border.
  • Make sure mobile employees are educated on the 90- to 180-day rule and consider the use of central monitoring of travel days into and out of the Schengen area to reduce the risk of inadvertent overstays.

Looking Ahead

Later in 2026, the EU plans to introduce the European Travel Information and Authorisation System (ETIAS), a pre-travel authorisation requirement for visa-exempt travellers, which will be separate from the EES system at the border. We will share further guidance once the ETIAS timing and requirements are confirmed and explain how it interacts with existing travel and immigration procedures.


Sirva can help support you as a result of these changes. If you would like to discuss how these changes may affect your travel or mobility programme, please contact your Sirva representative or email us at concierge@sirva.com.


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