Europe Publishes 29 Countries Whose Citizens Are Not Required to Apply for EES Registration
- Europe's Entry/Exit System applies to travellers entering the Schengen zone for short stays of up to 90 days within a 180-day period
- An official European government source has published the full list of 29 countries whose citizens will not need to register under the EES
- Nationals of Cyprus and Ireland are also exempt from EES registration alongside citizens of the 29 listed Schengen member states
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Europe's Entry/Exit System (EES) is set to change how millions of travellers cross into the Schengen zone, but one group will not need to worry about the new registration process at all.
An official European government source has confirmed which nationals are fully exempt from EES registration, publishing a clear list of the countries whose citizens fall outside the system's requirements.
Source: UGC
What Europe's Entry/Exit System covers
The Entry/Exit System applies to anyone entering or leaving a Schengen member state on either a visa-required or visa-exempt short stay, defined as a maximum of 90 days within any 180-day period. The system tracks crossings across 29 participating countries:
- Austria
- Belgium
- Bulgaria
- Croatia
- Czechia
- Denmark
- Estonia
- Finland
- France
- Germany
- Greece
- Hungary
- Iceland
- Italy
- Latvia
- Liechtenstein
- Lithuania
- Luxembourg
- Malta
- Netherlands
- Norway
- Poland
- Portugal
- Romania
- Slovakia
- Slovenia
- Spain
- Sweden
- Switzerland
Entry/Exit System: Who doesn't need to register
Nationals of those same 29 countries are fully exempt from EES registration. The exemption also extends to citizens of Cyprus and Ireland, even though those two countries are not part of the Schengen Area in the same way as the others on the list.
In practical terms, this means the EES is designed to track non-European short-stay visitors rather than those who hold citizenship in any of the participating or exempt states. For Africans and other non-European travellers who currently enter the Schengen zone on tourist visas or under visa-free arrangements, the new system will introduce a biometric registration process at the border, replacing the traditional passport stamp.
The development is particularly relevant for travellers from Nigeria, Ghana, Kenya, and other African countries who visit Europe regularly for business, tourism, or family visits, as they will be among those required to register under the new framework when it comes into force.
In a similar report, Legit.ng published that the US government announced the official visa requirements confirming that citizens of one country enjoy up to 180 days of visa-free entry.
US explains ESTA application route
Meanwhile, Legit.ng previously reported that the US government published how citizens of 42 countries can enter America using an Electronic System for Travel Authorisation (ESTA) instead of a traditional visa. The application requires a valid passport, a selfie photo, contact details and a $40.27 fee.
For many eligible travellers, ESTA offers a simpler route for short visits to America for tourism, business or transit. But the fee is non-refundable, meaning applicants pay whether their request is approved or denied.
Source: Legit.ng
