EU visa waiver delayed again - meaning Brits won't need to pay to enter Europe in 2024

British holidaymakers won’t need to pay a fee to enter the European Union until 2025 after the visa waiver scheme was delayed. The EU planned to launch the ETIAS (European Travel Information and Authorisation System) scheme in 2024, meaning UK travellers would have been required to pay a fee to enter popular destinations such as Spain, Italy and France next year.

Under the scheme Brits would need to complete an application form and pay a €7 application fee. However, it’s now been reported that the scheme has been delayed until May 2025.

Alongside this, the EU’s Entry/Exit System (EES) has been delayed - believed to be the cause of the postponement of the ETIAS scheme. The EES is an automated IT border security system which will register travellers when they cross an EU external border. In order for the ETIAS scheme to function the EES needs to be in place.

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An EU official confirmed the news to SchengenVisaInfo.com, saying that it had been rescheduled to May 2025 with the ‘possibility of further postponement’. They told the website: “We had initially hoped for the EES to become operational by the end of this year or, at the latest, the beginning of the next year.

“Due to unforeseen delays, it has become evident that this timeline is unattainable. As a result, the implementation of the ETIAS has been rescheduled to May 2025, with the possibility of further postponement.”

It’s not the first time the scheme has been delayed. It was previously postponed until 2024 in February this year.

The ETIAS visa waiver is an