Some British media have been sparking panic amid British nationals regarding trips to the European Union Member States starting from mid-2022, more specifically, regarding the European Travel Information and Authorization System (ETIAS).
The latter is a travel authorization, which the nationals of third countries under the Schengen visa-free regime will have to obtain sometime in the second half of next year, SchengenVisaInfo.com reports.
For Brits, as former EU nationals, the document may seem too much, but they already have to obtain such a similar document when travelling to the United States, called the Electronic System Travel Authorization (ESTA).
In particular, British media have reported that UK nationals will have to pay a “hefty fee” to enter Europe each time they travel to the block. In fact, EU’s ETIAS is cheaper than the US’ ESTA, as the first will cost €7 while the second currently costs just under €13 ($14).
“British tourists to be hit by hefty post-Brexit fee for EU holidays in 2022,” one of the headlines reads, while another one claims that “the post-Brexit fee will make holidays to Europe more expensive.”
The new requirement will hardly make trips to Europe more expensive. Not only because a €7 fee per application is quite low in comparison to fees that other third countries pay for visa applications (€80), but also because British nationals will have to apply for an ETIAS only every three years, and not each time they travel to the EU.
“The ETIAS will not be a burden for travellers’ finances as it will cost only €7. At the same time, each ETIAS that is approved will be valid for a period of three years, or until the holder’s passport expires, whichever comes first,” travel experts at SchengenVisaInfo.com explain, also pointing out that a single travel authorization can be used to travel to the EU multiple times, as long as the holders do not overstay the permitted period to remain in the Schengen Area.
The experts further explain that travellers under the age of 18 will not have to pay any fees when applying for an ETIAS travel authorization.
Around 1.4 billion travellers from more than 60 world countries will have to obtain an ETIAS by the end of next year, including here Americans, Georgians, Albanians, and more. The same can currently travel to the 26 Schengen Area countries visa-free.
The EU has created the ETIAS in a bid to prevent from entering its territory those who pose security, public health, or migratory risk to the block. The procedures for its creation started back in 2016.
First published on: www.schengenvisainfo.com/
