The new requirement ETIAS or SEIAV (in spanish Servicio Europeo de Información y Autorización de Viaje) to travel to Schengen space is about to be launched. Originally the announcing date was November 2023, or at least at the end of 2023. The official sources are saying “ETIAS is expected to be operational in 2024”. Although this could mean anytime of the year 2024, what is certain is that it will definitely come into effect in 2024.

It is not being easy to carry out the merging and integration of all the systems that are part of the ETIAS – SEIAV project, and the ETIAS final launch will definitely depend of the success of this endeavor. The related systems are:

• Schengen Information System (SIS)
• Visa Information System (VIS)
• Europol
• Eurodac
• Exit and Entry System (EES)
• Interpol: SLTD and TDAWN
• ETIAS watch list
• ECRIS-TCNs (still pending final negotiations) European Criminal Records Information System – Third Country Nationals

In particular EES is experimenting some implementation problems at ports, as we covered in our last article. Our guess is that the ETIAS final launch will be at around mid-year, thus taking some part of the year making up for the last minute challenges encountered. And once announced, there will start a preliminary period, usually about 6 months in which denied boarding will not be conducted by the airlines if ETIAS has not been filed. This is intended for giving sometime for travelers to get used to the new requirement.

ETIAS – SEIAV was proposed back in 2016 by European Commission to “strengthen security checks on those persons who travel visa-free to the EU” currently from over 60 countries. After negotiations with the European Parliament and the Council, the ETIAS regulation was adopted on 12 September 2018 and entered into force on October 9th, 2018.

It was formerly ment to be implemented on 2022 but it was delayed due to the pandemic. Now it seems like ETIAS will be finally launched in 2024.