HM Government of Gibraltar (“HMGoG”) is aware of instances in which Gibraltar residents[1] (i.e. holders of Gibraltar identity cards or Gibraltar civilian registration cards) have been registered on the Schengen Entry/Exit System (the “EES”) when entering or leaving the Schengen Area.

This Technical Notice provides information to Gibraltar residents who may have been affected and explains what they should do if they believe that they have been incorrectly registered.

1.           Gibraltar residents are exempt from the EES.

Under the treaty arrangements governing the circulation of persons, Gibraltar residents are exempt from the EES. This exemption applies at Gibraltar Airport and all external borders of the Schengen Area. Gibraltar residents therefore remain exempt when travelling to or from the Schengen Area via any Schengen external border crossing point, including airports and ports in all Schengen States including Spain (e.g. upon arrival in Paris on a flight from New York).

2.           Incorrect registration of Gibraltar residents.

HMGoG has become aware that some Gibraltar residents may nevertheless have been registered on the EES by Schengen border authorities.

Where this has occurred, post-15 July 2026, the registration should not have been required. Where this occurred, pre-15 July 2026, the registration was required but further interactions with the EES should not now be required.

HMGoG understands that being incorrectly registered on the EES, or otherwise having the treaty arrangements incorrectly applied, can be upsetting, frustrating and inconvenient for those affected.

However, it is the responsibility of the relevant Schengen State, and its border authorities, to ensure that the applicable rules and exemptions under the treaty are correctly understood and applied. Whilst HMGoG will continue to raise issues with the relevant authorities, including the European Commission, HMGoG cannot intervene in or reverse decisions made by individual border officials at the external borders of the Schengen Area.

3.           Gibraltar residents who believe they have been incorrectly registered.

To assist in its dealings with the relevant authorities, HMGoG would like to establish the extent to which Gibraltar residents have been incorrectly registered on the EES post-15 July 2026.

If you are a Gibraltar resident and believe that you have been registered on the EES post-15 July 2026, please report the matter to eesinfo@gibraltar.gov.gi.

When contacting HMGoG, please provide:

·     your name;

·     whether you hold a Gibraltar identity card or Gibraltar civilian registration card;

·     the date on which the registration took place;

·     the Schengen State and border crossing point concerned;

·     whether you were entering or leaving the Schengen Area;

·     whether your fingerprints and/or facial image were taken; and

·     any other relevant information.

The information provided will assist HMGoG in monitoring the correct implementation of the treaty arrangements and in raising instances of concern with the relevant authorities.

If you were registered on the EES pre-15 July 2026, please also inform HMGoG providing the same information to the same email address.

4.           What should I do if I have already been registered?

HMGoG is discussing with the relevant authorities a process for individual registrations to be deleted from the EES, invariably of whether those registrations were made correctly pre-15 July 2026 or incorrectly post-15 July 2026.

For now, Gibraltar residents are not required to take any further steps. HMGoG expects to be in a position to provide further information regarding this shortly.

5.           How can I check whether I have been recorded on the EES?

It may not be obvious to you whether an individual registration for you has been created on the EES. If you have been asked to provide a facial image and your fingerprints when crossing an external border of the Schengen Area, it is likely to be the case that this was for the purpose of such registration and that, as such, a registration exists for you.

Without contacting the Schengen State which you know, or suspect may have created an EES registration for you, there is no publicly available tool through which to check whether you are registered on the EES or not.

To enquire whether you are registered on the EES, the European Commission provides the contact details for the relevant national authorities on its EES website:

EES – Data protection and contact details

Separately, what the European Union does provide is an online "How long can you stay?" tool which allows travellers to check the status of their authorised stay in the Schengen Area and the number of days they have remaining.

The tool is available here:

EU EES – Check how long you can stay

If the tool indicates that you have a period of authorised stay of less than 90 days remaining where you do not enter any data with respect to the intended entry or exit to or from the Schengen Area, this is an indication that you are registered on the EES and that previous travel has been processed on the EES.

6.           What should I do when travelling?

Invariably of whether Gibraltar residents are registered on the EES or not, they should continue to travel in the Schengen Area normally.

Gibraltar residents should continue to carry their passport and valid Gibraltar identity card or Gibraltar civilian registration card when travelling through Schengen external borders.

Gibraltar residents should present their passports and valid Gibraltar identity card or Gibraltar civilian registration cards to the border authorities to establish their entitlement to the applicable EES exemption under the treaty arrangements.

If a border official nevertheless seeks to register travellers on the EES, or if a border official raises questions regarding data recorded on a pre-existing EES registration, the traveller should politely explain that they are a Gibraltar resident and are exempt from the EES under the treaty arrangements.

If registration nevertheless takes place, or other issues are raised, Gibraltar residents are encouraged to report the incident to HMGoG at eesinfo@gibraltar.gov.gi so that the matter can be recorded and raised through the appropriate channels.

7.            Further Information.

For official updates and further guidance, please visit: https://treaty.gov.gi

NOTE:

[1] For the avoidance of doubt, although the term “Gibraltar residents” is used in this Technical Notice as shorthand, the arrangements for the circulation of persons under the Treaty apply equally to Gibraltar identity cardholders who are not resident in Gibraltar, as HMGoG has repeatedly clarified.