What you need to know for the EU's new biometric data

The system requires the collection of biometric information from visitors crossing borders. It will eventually replace the stamps in your passport

- CHRISTINE CHUNG

FOR THE FIRST time, the European Union will require visitors to submit personal data, their faces and fingerprints, when they enter or exit borders.

The Entry/Exit System, or EES, began last week and is scheduled to be rolled out to all border security checkpoints at ports, airports and land crossings over the next six months. It will lead to the elimination of passport stamping, and it is part of a broad effort by the European Union to better secure its borders. “This patchwork rollout underscores that the launch of EES is a process rather than a single moment," said Jo Antoons, a partner at the global immigration firm Fragomen. "The question isn't so much which countries will switch on but rather which border posts are ready and how quickly they can bring the system online." Here's what travellers should know.