Traveling to Europe Visa-Free with ETIAS
The new European Travel Information and Authorization System (also called ETIAS Visa Waiver) is part of this initiative and will be implemented at the end of 2022. Keep reading to find out how it will affect your travel plans.
ETIAS is not a visa and is designed to make things easy for holidaymakers. In fact, it’s a visa waiver, meaning that it’s an authorization designed to allow eligible travellers to enter the Schengen Area without having to obtain a visa permit beforehand.
By registering with the ETIAS visa waiver system, eligible tourists will be able to visit as many as 30 European countries without a single visa application. Launching in 2022 non-EU nationals will just need to connect to the internet in order to apply. Very similar to the US ESTA Visa Waiver processing times are going to be very fast – you will receive the approved ETIAS within a few days or even hours.
Who needs an ETIAS? If you are a non-EU citizen or resident and currently don’t need a visa for Europe, it’s very likely that you will have to obtain an ETIAS from 2022. Over 60 nationalities will be eligible to apply for the new program, including countries such as the U.S., Australia, and Canada.