Travellers heading to or through Poland this summer will encounter the European Union’s new Entry/Exit System (EES) at every external Schengen border. A news notice issued on 27 July by the European Commission’s Directorate-General for Migration and Home Affairs confirms that the biometric registration system—fully operational since 10 April—has already logged more than 145 million crossings. The reminder is timely: Warsaw-Chopin, Kraków-Balice and the road crossings with Ukraine, Belarus and Russia expect record flows in the first week of August. The Commission stressed that most non-EU short-stay visitors will have four fingerprints and a facial image captured when leaving or entering the Schengen area. However, the article provides a consolidated list of categories that are **exempt**. These include holders of long-stay visas or residence permits, family members of EU/EEA citizens who possess residence cards, and nationals of micro-states such as Andorra or San Marino. Exempt travellers will still undergo standard document checks but will not need to provide biometrics. For Polish airports and the Border Guard (Straż Graniczna), the clarification helps fine-tune passenger-flow planning. Airports have installed additional self-service kiosks and created separate lanes for exempt groups; failure to pre-segregate often causes bottlenecks. Airlines have been instructed to inform passengers at check-in about the new procedure so they can budget the extra time—currently estimated at three to five minutes per first-time enrolment. Business-class fast-track lanes now include a biometric-capture station at Warsaw-Chopin. Companies relocating talent to Poland should review travel policies: assignees with national (D-type) visas or Polish residence permits can use the exempt lanes, while short-term commuters on visa-free passports must register. HR teams are advised to update arrival briefings and ensure employees carry residence cards even on short trips outside the EU; otherwise they will be treated as first-time registrants on return. Polish exporters inviting clients for 90-day visits may wish to schedule buffer time in itineraries, particularly at land borders where equipment is still being calibrated. Although the EES roll-out has gone smoothly so far, the Commission plans a formal evaluation in October. Any operational tweaks—including possible extension of exemptions—will be discussed with member states. Polish authorities have indicated they will publish passenger-flow statistics after the busy August period, giving businesses and travellers clearer insight into real-world processing times.
