On 27 July 2026 the European Commission’s Directorate-General for Migration & Home Affairs issued fresh guidance on exemptions from the Entry/Exit System (EES), the biometric border database that became fully operational on 10 April 2026. The note answers mounting questions from carriers and airport authorities—including Brussels Airport—about which travellers must have fingerprints and facial images captured when crossing an external Schengen frontier. Key points: holders of long-stay visas (type D) or residence permits issued by any Schengen state remain outside the EES, as do family members of EU/EEA/Swiss nationals who possess a residence card. Also excluded are nationals of Andorra, Monaco, San Marino and the Vatican. Everyone else—around 180 million short-stay visitors per year—continues to have biometric data collected and matched at each entry and exit. For Belgium this clarification is critical. Brussels Airport has processed more than 5 million non-EU passengers since April and reported sporadic queues at Pier B when border guards had to decide exemption status on the spot. The new list allows Federal Police to implement an automated ‘green lane’ for residence-permit holders, potentially shaving 15-20 seconds per passenger. Eurostar terminals in Brussels-Midi will also adjust e-gate software before the end-of-August holiday rush. Corporate mobility managers should brief business travellers who hold Belgian type D visas that they can use manual lanes to avoid unnecessary biometric capture, but they must still carry the physical permit. Meanwhile, dependants awaiting issuance of a Belgian residence card will continue to be enrolled in EES each time they enter or leave Schengen, which could generate overstay alerts if passports are not stamped correctly. Airlines have welcomed the clarity but warn that check-in systems must be re-programmed so that exemption categories are transmitted in advance to Belgian border police (API/PNR messages). Failure to match the EES status can still trigger fines of €3,000 per mis-categorised passenger under Belgian law.
Source: European Commission – DG HOME
