ETIAS 2026: Start Date, Fee and Your 90/180 Days
Quinn Moran · October 6, 2026
ETIAS has not started. As of October 2026 the European Commission says the system is not in operation, no applications are being taken, and the EU will announce the start date several months before launch. When it starts, visa-exempt travellers such as US, UK and Canadian citizens will need a EUR 20 online travel authorisation, valid for three years or until the passport expires. It is not a visa and it does not change the 90/180 rule: you still get 90 days in any 180, now counted by the Entry/Exit System.
On this page
ETIAS gets searched more than almost any other European travel term, mostly by people trying to work out whether they need to do something before their next trip. As of 6 October 2026, the answer is no. ETIAS is not running, and the EU has not announced when it will.
This post sets out what the EU itself says, what the law already fixes (fee, validity, transition), and the part that matters more for long stays: ETIAS has nothing to do with how many days you can spend in Europe. That job belongs to the 90/180 rule and the Entry/Exit System.
Where ETIAS stands now
The European Commission's ETIAS page says three things:
- the system is not in operation and no applications are being collected;
- the EU will announce the start date several months before launch;
- once live, you will apply through an official website or app.
There is no confirmed start date on any EU page we could check, and press reports of a late-2026 or 2027 start are not official. When the EU announces the date, it will be months ahead, so there is no reason to apply anywhere now. Any site taking ETIAS payments today is not the EU.
What ETIAS is
ETIAS, the European Travel Information and Authorisation System, is a travel authorisation, not a visa. It applies to visa-exempt travellers (US, UK, Canadian and Australian citizens among them) visiting the 30 European countries it covers for a short stay. You fill in an online form before you travel, the system screens it against EU databases, and the result is linked to your passport. Border guards check it along with the passport.
The ETIAS Regulation, (EU) 2018/1240, fixes most of the details:
| What the law says | |
|---|---|
| Fee | EUR 20 (raised from the EUR 7 in the 2018 text; takes effect once ETIAS is live). The 2018 text waives it for under-18s and over-70s. |
| Validity | 3 years, or until the passport expires, whichever comes first |
| Right of entry | None. The regulation says an authorisation does not confer an automatic right of entry or stay. |
| First 6 months | Optional. The requirement does not apply yet; the Commission can extend this period. |
| Next 6 months | Grace period. The requirement applies, but border guards can still let in travellers without one if they meet the other entry conditions. |
So even after launch, there is at least a year before anyone is refused boarding or entry for not having one.
What ETIAS does not do: count your days
This is the part most ETIAS explainers skip. ETIAS answers may this person travel? It does not answer how long may they stay?
The stay limit is unchanged: 90 days in any 180-day period across the Schengen area. Every day you are present counts, including the day you arrive and the day you leave, and the 180-day window rolls forward one day at a time. It does not reset on a fixed date. Our Schengen 90/180 guide explains the rolling window with examples.
What did change in 2026 is enforcement. The Entry/Exit System (EES) has been fully operational since 10 April 2026 in the 29 Schengen countries that use it. It replaced passport stamps with a biometric record of every entry and exit and works out overstays automatically. How that changed the 90/180 rule in practice is covered in the Schengen 90/180 rule in 2026, and what disappearing stamps mean for proving where you were is in passport stamps are disappearing.
Put the two systems side by side:
| ETIAS | EES | |
|---|---|---|
| Status (October 2026) | Not running; no start date | Fully operational since 10 April 2026 |
| What it is | Pre-travel authorisation | Border record of entries and exits |
| Cost | EUR 20 once live | Free |
| Counts your 90/180 days | No | Yes |
The border now counts your days. If your count and the border's count differ, the border's wins at the gate.
What to do now
- Nothing for ETIAS until the EU announces a date. Ignore paid "ETIAS application" sites.
- Check your passport expiry. ETIAS validity will be tied to it, and a passport near expiry will mean reapplying.
- Count your Schengen days now. EES is already doing it. Use the free Schengen 90/180 calculator to check a trip, especially if you split time between Europe and the UK or visit several times a year.
Where iReside fits
iReside counts your Schengen days for you. It runs in the background on your iPhone, records which country you were in each day by GPS, and keeps a rolling 90/180 count across all 29 Schengen countries, with nothing to log by hand. Add a future trip as a planned stay to see whether it fits, and get alerts 30, 7 and 3 days before your limit with the date you need to leave by. The same app counts US state days and the Substantial Presence Test if you split the year between home and Europe.
Download free on the App Store