Starting from the end of the fourth quarter of 2026, citizens of Ukraine (as well as other visa-free regime beneficiaries) will have to obtain a paid electronic ETIAS authorization in advance to enter European Union and Schengen Area countries—the usual border crossing with just a biometric passport without prior authorization will cease to apply.

ETIAS (European Travel Information and Authorisation System) is an electronic pre-authorization system for short-term stays (up to 90 days within a 180-day period) for citizens of visa-exempt countries. It is not a visa, but it will be mandatory for entry into 30 European countries (including Schengen Area countries, Bulgaria, Romania, and Cyprus).

How much it will cost:

€20 — the application fee for applicants aged 18 to 70. Persons under 18 and over 70 are exempt from the fee (though authorization must still be obtained).

The authorization will be valid for up to three years or until the passport expires—whichever comes first. The application is completed online on the official ETIAS website before the trip, and processing begins only after payment.

What is important to know:

• The fee is non-refundable, even in the case of a refusal or trip cancellation.
• A separate application with a separate payment must be submitted for each traveler.
• Possessing an ETIAS does not guarantee automatic entry at the border—the final decision remains with the border guards.

The ETIAS system was approved by regulation back in 2018; its launch has been postponed several times due to technical and organizational difficulties. The current goal is to implement it in the fourth quarter of 2026.

In parallel, the EU is implementing the Entry/Exit System (EES)—a digital system for recording border crossings (biometric fingerprint and facial data), which began its scheduled rollout in October 2025 and will serve as the foundation for ETIAS operations.

The ETIAS system is similar to foreign electronic authorizations: the Electronic System for Travel Authorization (ESTA) in the USA or the Electronic Travel Authorisation (ETA) in the UK, which also require prior online authorization and a processing fee.

The originally planned fee of €7 was increased to €20 in July 2025 by a European Commission decision, taking into account inflation and additional technical costs, as well as to ensure comparability with other international electronic authorization schemes.