The development of the European Travel Information and Authorisation System (ETIAS), which is the EU counterpart to the US ESTA and the Australian ETA, is moving forward and it is now planned to install the system by 2022. Anyone coming from a country whose nationals are not subject to mandatory visa requirements or is not an EU resident will have to apply online for travel authorisation before travelling to the Schengen area and get pre-vetted on the basis of background checks against information systems, screening rules and a dedicated watchlist.
The authorisation will apply only to tourism, namely visits of 90 days out of every 180 days, and will be valid for three years. The system is promised to be speedy – in the majority of cases a decision will be issued within minutes – and cheap (Euros 7 as opposed to Euros 80 for a Schengen visa).
The system will be set up pursuant to Regulation 2018/1240 and will encompass extensive interoperability with other EU information systems (Schengen Information System – SIS -, Visa Information System – VIS –, Eurodac, Entry/Exit System, Europol and certain Interpol databases).
