The implementation of the European Travel Information and Authorization System (ETIAS) has come across another one delay, extending the launch to 2025 instead of the originally expected launch date in the coming year. Remarkable, this is the third time ETIAS has faced a postponement, raising concerns among European Union officials who have hinted at the possibility of further delays in the future.
According to the official government website, the European Travel Information and Authorization System (ETIAS) will now launch in mid-2025 at the earliest. The EU’s Justice and Home Affairs Council approved the postponement on Friday.
“The new roadmap for the delivery of the new IT architecture foresees… that ETIAS will be ready to be deployed in spring 2025,” The Justice and Home Affairs Council said this in a statement.
Before this recent delay, the ETIAS fee was originally scheduled to start in 2021. However, this was first postponed until November 2023 and then again until early 2024.
Travelers from countries where a visa is not required, such as the US, must pay €7 ($7.44) to enter 30 different European countries. The three-year fee continues until the traveler’s document expires.
Europe is not the only region to introduce a fee for travel permits. The United Kingdom has also begun implementing an Electronic Travel Authorization Program (ETA), which will eventually require all visa-exempt foreign travelers to apply before visiting. The UK is phasing in this program as part of its wider initiative to achieve full digitalisation of its border processes by 2025.
ESTA stands for Electronic Travel Authorization System. for the US It is an automated system that determines whether travelers are eligible to visit the United States under the Visa Waiver Program (VWP).
Canada has the Electronic Travel Authorization (eTA) programwhich allows visa-exempt foreigners traveling to Canada by air to apply for an eTA online.
Australia offers the Electronic Travel Authority (ETA) and eVisitor visas for eligible travelers, allowing them to visit for tourism, business or family visits.
New Zealand offers an Electronic Travel Authority (NZeTA) for travelers from visa exemption countries who want to visit for a maximum of three months.
India has the Electronic Travel Authorization (ETA). The ETA allows eligible foreign travelers to apply for permission to visit India for short-term tourism, business, medical treatment or educational purposes.
Egypt has its own travel authorization system, the ‘Egypt e-Visa’ or ‘Egyptian Electronic Visa’. This system allows travelers from eligible countries to apply for a visa online before arriving in Egypt
