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    What is the EU Entry/Exit System (EES) at the Finnish border?

    Who is registered, what data is collected and what it means at Helsinki Airport.

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    Short answer

    The Entry/Exit System is the EU's digital border register for non-EU citizens on short stays. It started on 12 October 2025 and replaces passport stamps. On your first crossing you give your passport data, a face image and fingerprints, and each later entry and exit is recorded automatically.

    Visas and Entry Regulations (Schengen)

    Why

    1. The European Commission says 29 European countries started introducing the EES on 12 October 2025 at their external borders.
    2. The system records name, travel document data, fingerprints, face image and the date and place of entry and exit, according to the Commission.
    3. Finnair says the first registration at Helsinki Airport starts at a self-service kiosk, after which a border guard checks the data.

    Details

    EES does not apply to EU, EEA or Swiss citizens, or to non-EU residents with a residence permit. It also records refusals of entry.

    Tip

    Allow extra time at passport control on your first trip after the change. Registration at the kiosk takes longer than the next crossings.

    What may differ

    Travellers with a visa usually give only a face image at the border, because their fingerprints were taken for the visa. Children under 12 are not fingerprinted.

    Common misconception

    EES is a new visa you have to apply for online before travelling.

    What actually happens

    EES is registration at the border and you do not apply for it. The separate online travel authorisation ETIAS is not in operation yet.

    People also ask

    • What is EES?
    • Do I need fingerprints to enter Finland?
    • Are passports still stamped in Finland?

    Sources

    This answer is for reference only. Entry rules can change, so check the Ministry for Foreign Affairs of Finland and the Finnish Border Guard before you travel.

    Visas and Entry Regulations (Schengen)
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