The European Commission has postponed the launch of ETIAS system, under which travelers from visa-free countries must pay a fee of 7 euros every three years to authorize their trips.

This is reported by Euronews.

The new scheme implies that after the launch and after a transition period, the entry of the Ukrainians in the EU with a biometric passport will be possible with prior registration (authorization) in the new system.

The authorization will be paid - will cost 7 euros - and will be valid for 3 years, during which the re-registration for travel is not required.

The EU emphasizes that registration is not analogous to a visa, as it does not require proof of purpose of entry or provision of supporting documents - proof of income, status, etc.

In addition, the application does not require a visit to a visa center, is made online, and in the vast majority of cases the authorization will be provided automatically, within seconds or minutes. We are talking about filling out a questionnaire-questionnaire.

The European Commission estimates the time required to fill out the questionnaire for the first time at 20 minutes.

Back in 2016, the European Union made a fundamental decision to change the border crossing procedure for citizens of those states that have the right to visa-free entry to the EU. In 2018, the European Parliament approved legislation establishing the parameters of the new system, called ETIAS.

However, the launch of the system was postponed several times, including due to the need for additional funding and in the technical legislation, which was finally adopted only in 2021. At that time, Brussels expected that the ETIAS system could be launched from the beginning of 2022, but it had to be postponed again.