Everyone with a UK passport has been urged to be aware of a rule change coming later this year.
From November, anyone travelling to certain European countries won't be required to have their passport stamped when they come back home to the UK.
This is because the process will become digital, with an automatic entry and exit system (EES) registering non-EU visitors at airports in order to speed it up and provide more reliable data.
Birmingham Live reports that ever since Brexit, UK tourists have needed stamps whenever they've entered or exited the Schengen Area, which prove holidaymakers and passengers haven't stayed outside their visa requirements.
The European Commission’s department for Migration and Home Affairs said: "EES will replace the current system of manual stamping of passports, which is time consuming, does not provide reliable data on border crossings and does not allow a systematic detection of overstayers."
The 27 Schengen countries include Austria, Belgium, Czech Republic, Croatia, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Italy, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, and Switzerland.
In a statement about the soon-to-be-updated process, VFS Global said: "We are fully aware that the EU plans to digitise the visa application process, and as an external service provider to virtually all EU and Schengen governments, VFS Global looks forward to work with these governments to support them on their transformation journey."
Whenever someone crosses over an EU external border, the new system will register their name, type of travel document, biometric data (fingerprints and facial images) and the date and place of entry and exit. It will also record refusals of entry.
It was originally set to launch in 2022, but was delayed until May 2023 and again until November. Travellers with visa-free access to the Schengen Area will be required to obtain travel authorisation online through the European Travel Information and Authorisation System (ETIAS).
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