ETIAS: Fee for European travel authorisation set to increase to €20
Under the European Travel Information and Authorisation System (ETIAS), non-EU nationals who can travel to the Schengen area without a visa will have to apply for an online travel authorisation before departure, providing information such as name, date of birth and travel document number. They will also have to pay a fee for the three-year travel authorisation (although under 18s and over 70s are exempt).
The Commission said on Friday that the ETIAS is expected to become operational in the last quarter of 2026, at a higher fee than initially planned.
"Taking into account the rise in inflation since 2018 and additional operational costs related eg to new technical features integrated into the system, the fee will be adjusted to €20 per application, valid for a period of three years,' the Commission said.
"It will also bring the cost for a travel authorisation to the EU in line with similar travel authorisation programmes such as the UK Electronic Travel Authorisation (ETA) and the US Electronic System for Travel Authorization (ESTA),' the EU executive added.
The UK launched its Electronic Travel Authorisation in 2023 and extended it to EU nationals in 2025, increasing its cost from £10 to £16 in April. While the ETA lasts two years, the ETIAS is valid for three years.
The US Electronic System for Travel Authorization (ESTA) costs $21.
People under 18 or over 70 years of age at the time of application, as well as family members of EU citizens and of non-EU nationals who have the right to move freely in the EU, will be exempted from the ETIAS fee.
The new fee will have to be endorsed by the EU Council and the European Parliament in the coming months.
Which one is ETIAS again?
The EU has big changes planned at its external borders, with two new systems - EES and ETIAS.
EES is an enhanced passport check requiring biometrics including fingerprints and a facial scan.
ETIAS is a travel authorisation which must be applied for online - and paid for - ahead of travel.
The ETIAS 'is part of the new IT architecture of the EU that aims to strengthen security within our Union, while facilitating travelling of non-EU nationals,' the Commission said.
Both schemes apply only to people who are travelling on the passport of a non-EU or Schengen zone country, and both schemes have a number of exemptions - including non-EU citizens who have residency within an EU or Schengen zone country.
Find the full details here.
When are these changes coming in?
Initially envisioned for 2018, EES and ETIAS have been the subject of numerous delays, first because of the pandemic and then because of fears of queues at the border as countries struggled to get the necessary infrastructure in place. The busy UK-France border is a particular worry.
The EES is set to begin its phased roll out in October 2025 after several delays due to the functioning of the huge IT infrastructure behind it and concerns expressed by several member states and travel companies at the chaos it could provoke, especially at juxtaposed border checks in the UK.
ETIAS is currently scheduled for the last quarter of 2026 - although the plan is to wait until EES is working smoothly before ETIAS is introduced, so it could be delayed again.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Local Spain
2 days ago
- Local Spain
ETIAS: Fee for European travel authorisation set to increase to €20
ETIAS - the second part of the EU's new border control measures - will apply to tourists entering Europe from non-EU or Schengen zone countries, including the UK, as well as others coming for short visits. Under the European Travel Information and Authorisation System (ETIAS), non-EU nationals who can travel to the Schengen area without a visa will have to apply for an online travel authorisation before departure, providing information such as name, date of birth and travel document number. They will also have to pay a fee for the three-year travel authorisation (although under 18s and over 70s are exempt). The Commission said on Friday that the ETIAS is expected to become operational in the last quarter of 2026, at a higher fee than initially planned. "Taking into account the rise in inflation since 2018 and additional operational costs related eg to new technical features integrated into the system, the fee will be adjusted to €20 per application, valid for a period of three years,' the Commission said. "It will also bring the cost for a travel authorisation to the EU in line with similar travel authorisation programmes such as the UK Electronic Travel Authorisation (ETA) and the US Electronic System for Travel Authorization (ESTA),' the EU executive added. The UK launched its Electronic Travel Authorisation in 2023 and extended it to EU nationals in 2025, increasing its cost from £10 to £16 in April. While the ETA lasts two years, the ETIAS is valid for three years. The US Electronic System for Travel Authorization (ESTA) costs $21. People under 18 or over 70 years of age at the time of application, as well as family members of EU citizens and of non-EU nationals who have the right to move freely in the EU, will be exempted from the ETIAS fee. The new fee will have to be endorsed by the EU Council and the European Parliament in the coming months. Which one is ETIAS again? The EU has big changes planned at its external borders, with two new systems - EES and ETIAS. EES is an enhanced passport check requiring biometrics including fingerprints and a facial scan. ETIAS is a travel authorisation which must be applied for online - and paid for - ahead of travel. The ETIAS 'is part of the new IT architecture of the EU that aims to strengthen security within our Union, while facilitating travelling of non-EU nationals,' the Commission said. Both schemes apply only to people who are travelling on the passport of a non-EU or Schengen zone country, and both schemes have a number of exemptions - including non-EU citizens who have residency within an EU or Schengen zone country. Find the full details here. When are these changes coming in? Initially envisioned for 2018, EES and ETIAS have been the subject of numerous delays, first because of the pandemic and then because of fears of queues at the border as countries struggled to get the necessary infrastructure in place. The busy UK-France border is a particular worry. The EES is set to begin its phased roll out in October 2025 after several delays due to the functioning of the huge IT infrastructure behind it and concerns expressed by several member states and travel companies at the chaos it could provoke, especially at juxtaposed border checks in the UK. ETIAS is currently scheduled for the last quarter of 2026 - although the plan is to wait until EES is working smoothly before ETIAS is introduced, so it could be delayed again.
Local Spain
5 days ago
- Local Spain
Is the Student Visa still the easiest visa to get for Spain?
There are several ways to get residency in Spain as a non-EU national. One is via the Digital Nomad Visa (DNV) if you have a remote job or are self-employed and earn over a certain threshold, while another is the Non-Lucrative Visa (NLV), where you aren't allowed to work but must prove you have enough in savings and passive income. The third most popular option is the Student Visa, which has often been said to be easiest visa to gain residency in Spain. With the recent changes to the Student Visa which came into force in May 2025, however, is this still the easiest visa to get? Firstly, there is no simple answer to this question. It entirely depends on what type of course you plan on taking. The rules are now very different if you want to take say a language course or if you want to take a higher education course. Previously, you could sign up to a language course and then exchange your visa later on to a different one whilst you were still living here, but now you can only stay a maximum of two years. This could be an excellent option if that's all you want to stay for. As long as you're accepted onto the course and can afford it, getting the visa should be relatively easy for this type of course. Year-long language courses in Spain can range anywhere from €3,000 to €7,000 depending on what it includes and where it's located. This is significantly cheaper than the €2,762 per month needed for the Digital Nomad Visa, as well as a lot less paperwork. It's also a lot less than the €28,800 per year needed for the Non-lucrative visa and less hassle than proving where all your passive income comes from. One point to keep in mind is that at end of your first year, you can only renew your Student Visa for a second year if you pass a language proficiency test first. So, you'll have to make sure you've actually been studying. It's no longer just a way to get residency. This is still a great and easy option if you only want to stay for two years, but if you want to stay longer, then you'll have to sign up to a higher education course. It could mean a significant amount of study time, not to mention quite a bit more in fees. According to Study in Spain, for a Bachelor's Degree at a private university in Spain, you can expect to pay from €2,400 to €30,000. Keep in mind that public universities are generally cheaper but it's likely the course will be taught in Spanish or other local languages such as Catalan in Catalonia. If you go to a public university, Master's courses can start anywhere from €800 for the year, but if you go a private university, it can range from €7,000 upwards. This could work out cheaper than the DNV or the NLV, but it could work out more expensive too, depending on what type of course you do and where you study. Doing a Bachelor's or a Master's is also a big commitment, so you have to be prepared for it, it's not just simply an easy way to get to live in Spain either. For some courses you may also need to prove previous experience or qualifications. This could be tricky depending on what country you're from and if Spain recognises your previous qualifications. Going through the recognition process to get them recognised here can be very difficult and time consuming. If you don't have to prove previous qualifications it will be a lot easier for you. One thing to keep in mind is that if you eventually want to move back to your home country or another country, you'll have to make sure that your qualification from the Spanish university is valid and you can use it elsewhere. If you are applying for the long-term Student Visa for a course that lasts more than six months, you will also need to provide proof of financial resources to support yourself and have private medical insurance. Both of these can again make the Student Visa slightly more complicated. According to Studying in Spain, it can take between 1-3 months to apply for the Student Visa, which is similar to the length of time needed for the DNV or NLV. Another point to be aware of is that you can only apply for a Student Visa outside of Spain. This is similar to the NLV, however for the DNV you can apply for it once you're already in Spain. This makes the DNV slightly easier in that respect. All in all, the Student Visa is still one of the easiest visas to get to live in Spain provided you're accepted onto a course and can pay for it, it's just a lot harder to apply for than it was before.
Local Spain
5 days ago
- Local Spain
Airbnb to cancel listings for lets not registered with Spain's government
Property For Members Airbnb has agreed with Spain's Housing Ministry to take down property listings from its homestay platform if they haven't been registered with the government as required, meaning that over 100,000 short-term and seasonal lets could be affected. Looking to move? Find your next rental apartment here. This July, Spain became the first country in the EU implement the new European regulations on the single registry of short-term rentals. The aim of this is to put a stop to fraud, as well as illegal tourist rentals that conflicts with citizens' right to affordable housing. Landlords had until July 1st 2025 in order to register all tourist, temporary and seasonal rentals, but by July 2nd, almost half had failed to do so. This means that now, thousands of them do not have the right to advertise on platforms such as Airbnb or Only once they have registered and have a special registration number will they be allowed to advertise and get customers. Starting in August 2025, Airbnb has agreed to send the information required by to the Housing Department on a monthly basis, including the corresponding state and regional registration numbers. It has also agreed to remove listings that show irregularities in the national registry or do not appear on it at all. In these cases, the platform will notify hosts in advance, offering them a period of time to correct issue before proceeding with the final removal, unless its state registration number has been revoked, in which case it no longer be included. Back in May of this year, Spain's Ministry of Consumer Affairs asked Airbnb to take down 65,935 tourist accommodation ads from its website, which were in violation of regulations. It is unclear yet how much overlap there is between these almost 66,000 listings already flagged for removal and those not registered on the government's registry, but on the day after the deadline there were 152,857 properties which didn't have the necessary registration code. There are 368,295 short-term and temporary lets in Spain according to the country's National Statistics Institute (INE), although many believe that figure to be higher. The most common reason for a listing to be removed is for properties that have failed to provide their tourist license on the ad, which is mandatory in several regions across the country. This means that in all likelihood they were operating illegally. Spain has been dealing with a severe housing crisis over the last few years, and tourist and seasonal rentals have been largely blamed for taking housing away from the general rental market for locals and contributing to skyrocketing prices.
