Europeanvacation destinationswill begin requiring all travelers to have prints of their fingers taken, as well as photos, upon arrival in a new screening process.France, Italy, Portugal, the United Kingdom and 25 other countries began implementing a new Entry/Exit System (EES) on Oct. 12 and come April 10, it will be fully enforced. The program will be introduced "in phases," officials say.AIRPORTS SET UP DONATION DRIVES FOR UNPAID TSA OFFICERS DURING DHS FUNDING CRISIS"These European countries will introduce the different elements of the EES in phases, including the collection of biometric data, such as facial image and fingerprints," the European Unions (EU) website notes."This means that biometric data (facial image and fingerprints) might not be collected at every border crossing point right away, and[travelers'] personal informationmay not be registered in the system," it continued.Manual passport stamping is being replaced by automatic digital registration."As passport stamping will no longer exist once the EES is operational, carriers must use an online interface to perform these checks instead," reads the EU site.It's anticipated that the new policy will help modernize border managementacross Europe, including security improvements to combat fraud and terrorism.TEST YOURSELF WITH OUR LATEST LIFESTYLE QUIZThe system will be able to track if visitors overstay their welcome in the Schengen Area, which is a zone of 29 European countries that allow movement.A self-service system is offered for those with a biometric passport, which contains a "chip" of the personal biometric information collected.This time last year in March 2025 nearly 1.6 million Americans traveled to Europe, according to the International Trade Administration.CLICK HERE FOR MORE LIFESTYLE STORIESRoughly 16 to 18 million Americans traveled to Europe in all of 2025, according to industry estimates.CLICK HERE TO SIGN UP FOR OUR LIFESTYLE NEWSLETTERThe U.S. is one of Europes biggest tourism markets, per the World Tourism Guide.