Visitors to Schengen countries will soon need to provide fingerprint biometric data upon arrival, according to The Hindu. While such practices are already in place in some parts of Europe, the article suggests that it will be widespread within “a couple of months”.

The Schengen area is the part of the European Union in which the usual border controls – passport checks and so on – do not apply, allowing for relatively free travel between its members countries. Due to the growing migrant crisis, however, it appears that EU members are increasingly keen to beef up security at the Schengen area’s entry points, and to that end will have an official policy of collecting fingerprint biometric data. Moreover, according to The Hindu, travelers will need to provide new biometric data every time they apply for travel visas.

While some readers of The Hindu may bristle at the new travel requirements, they are part of a growing trend in which India is also complicit. The country recently implemented new policies requiring British visitors to submit biometric data, and while that has caused consternation among travelers and India’s tourism industry alike, the government has indicated that it plans tocontinue with these regulations as a matter of national security.

Source: The Hindu

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September 24, 2015 – by Alex Perala