So passport stamping will be a thing of the past?

Have the EU definitely stated that TCNs using the Visa scheme to visit will not have their passports stamped?

I used the ESTA system for a decade and still got my passport stamped every time I entered the USA.

It is the EES which is meant to replace the passport stamping as everything is logged in a database.

ETIAS is just a way of usually being able to bypass some of the checks/questions that might be asked at a border.

The way it worked a couple of weeks ago at Ouistreham was - Queue up. Show p/port. Board ship.

At Pompey - Queue up. Show p/port. Drive on.

At Pompey - Queue up. Show p/port. Board ship.

Disembarking at Ouistreham - Queue up. Show p/port and CdS. Drive home.

Nobody interested in my two jars Waitrose horseradish sauce or jars marmalade - made and bottled in Spain. And 2.5 litres Wickes Trade Liquid Gloss.

There was no EU/Others booths. Just one for pets and ‘Anything to declare’.

Long may it be so easy.

The report of this conference should be of interest, especially on the high capacity car ferries solutions
Technical solutions to facilitate the user experience in ferry connections and collaboration between border control authorities and port authorities
https://frontex.europa.eu/future-of-border-control/research-and-innovation/announcements/frontex-holds-conference-on-the-entry-exit-system-ees-in-the-maritime-domain-1PSDq6

Interesting - the conference post states"The Entry-Exit System (EES) will register the entry and exit at the EU external borders of non-EU nationals who are not residing in the Schengen Area.

I thought it was to log all non-EU people? Will people with resident permits not have their entry / exit logged? Will that only be for entry / exit to the EU country of residence? What about EU countries which don;t haven’t done resident permits registration (Brexit here presumably - the 'declarative approach?).

Or is the statement about the EES actually incorrect here…?

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it is a bit of a mucking fuddle…
ISTR there was a indication that it had been made clear to external border controls that there was no requirement to stamp passports of TCN residents in the Schengen area but that (in some cases) French border control personnel at ports of entry (air, sea and road) were stamping them nonetheless and that it would all resolve itself when ETIAS became active.
That has now been delayed of course so the muddle will likely as not continue.
How that impacts internal travel within Schengen remains unclear except so far perhaps in that, if in the unlikely event they are challenged to do so, a French resident TCN with a WARP carte may be unable to justify an extended period of absence from their host State (differing absence rules applying for 5 year and 10 year WARP cartes).
I’m sure these eventualities may be prescribed somewhere but I’ve not researched it nor found a reference which explains it further.

Quite!

My interest is for Mme in UK for extended FR absence period for looking after her mum (medical) and her own medical checkups. What might a prefecture deem a ‘serious medical condition’ for the allowed 1 year single absence in the treaty?

So one french friend opined - don’t ask the prefecture, they won’t know

Another enquired at the UK French embassy when they happened to be there - feedback if your passport is not being stamped don’t see a big issue (first response was = ask the prefecture!). Do gather statement(s) from medical staff.

Anyway, I could possibly venture passport stamping with CdS are a thing of the past as the last two recent trips, one air and one ferry, had scrutiny of CdS both ways and no stamping - on the air one I saw passports stamped, not ours, so it wasn’t coz they had run out of ink! :slight_smile:

Larkswood just a thought, I know logistically it might be much harder but would it not be more convincing if her own medical care and checkups was based in the French health system? Even if it means extra trips back

The statement is correct. The Entry/Exit System (EES) will be an automated IT system for registering travellers from third-countries, both short-stay visa holders and visa exempt travellers, each time they cross an EU external border. see Entry-Exit System - European Commission

Those with residence permits will go through the same channel as those with EU passports, which presumably includes a separate checking system?.

@Graham ETIAS has nothing to do with passport stamping. It is a detailed pre-entry security check system to determine whether applicants can be allowed to enter any Schengen Zone country. Currently it is only planned to apply to those from countries where there is visa-free entry.
The EU are still discussing reforms of the Schengen Borders Code for internal borders IMMC.COM%282021%29891%20final.ENG.xhtml.1_EN_ACT_part1_v9.docx

I never said it did… why you shooting the messenger? :roll_eyes:

If I’ve understood correctly…
Those of us with an EU Permanent Resident CdS can swan down the EU channel… rather than dither, hither and thither…?? :wink:

not that I intend to cross outside-Schengen for the foreseeable… but it would be nice to have the knowledge firmly in my brain… just in case a trip does crop up and I find myself trying to get-back-within Schengen… and floundering.

With my recent trip to the UK, when I handed my passport over at the check before boarding, the customs officer rifled through my passport, and when he couldn’t find a stamp, asked me where I lived. I responded France and handed over my CdS and then he was all smiles, gave me a big Merci and didn’t stamp my passport. When I returned to France, I joined the far far shorter EU line and when I got to the checkpoint, duly handed my passport over, with CdS and the customs lady again gave me a big grin and waved me through. Seems like they feel anyone with a CdS has been ‘converted’ and on side :smiley: All in all, a pleasant, and very simple experience :+1:

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Perhaps you can explain what you meant by

EES, which replaces passport stamping, is now planned to be implemented May 2023. TCN holders will not need to go through EES but through the non-EES (EU passport) channel.
ETIAS is now planned to be implemented by Nov 2023 with requirement for all a few months later.

The devil is in the detail…

I = I (meaning me)
S = Seem
T = To
R= Recall
There was an indication = someone somewhere wrote

Explanation enough?
:roll_eyes:

And perhaps, if you had bothered to review what you had recalled, read the earlier discussion and considered the current status of the two entirely separate programmes and compared all the information, you might have realised it was not valid, so not worth repeating.

seems I have to mute you again :roll_eyes:

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I’m just wondering if there’s going to be any more stamping in this thread… or can we call it a day… :roll_eyes: :rofl:

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Can we stick to ‘dinner party’ behaviour please. Thanks.

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Goodness, that sounds like a lot of work for a sunny Saturday afternoon. If I tried that, I’d have forgotten why I had started before I was half way through :face_with_hand_over_mouth:

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I want to thank both @anon37731102 and @graham for their posts, this is an informative topic and indeed thanks to all contributors. And if there’s any ‘grey’ areas or a post is maybe not quite correct or misunderstood etc, that’s OK for me too because as an advice consumer I do read across all posts etc and I appreciate all advice / thoughts is offered on a sort of ‘best efforts’ basis.

Hope everyone keeps on contributing!

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