An agreement secured by Prime Minister Keir Starmer that UK passport holders will be allowed to use e-gates at EU airports won’t apply to travel this summer.
On Monday, Downing Street announced that the deal was part of a wider trade agreement with the EU reached at a UK-EU summit.
Sir Keir said allowing Brits to use e-gates when entering the EU would ‘end dreaded passport queues’.
However, a UK-EU summit explainer issued by the Government said the European Commission had agreed that ‘there will be no legal barriers to eGates use for UK nationals travelling to and from EU Member States, after the introduction of the EU’s Entry/Exit System.”
Since the long-delayed Entry/Exit System (EES) isn’t due to come into force until October 2025 at the earliest, the new agreement won’t lead to any changes for UK travel to the EU this summer.
When it is introduced, EES will be rolled out over a six-month period, so Brits won’t be able to use e-gates at some EU airports before spring 2026.
