Planning a trip to France, Spain or Greece next year? Here's something worth knowing before you book: the European Travel Information and Authorisation System (ETIAS) that you may have read about has been delayed until at least 2027, and any website currently selling an "ETIAS waiver" is taking you for a ride.

ETIAS was designed as an electronic pre-authorisation for visitors from visa-exempt countries like the US, UK, Canada and Australia. Once live, it will cover 30 countries across the Schengen Zone — think France, Germany, Italy, Switzerland, Iceland and most of continental Europe — allowing stays of up to 90 days within any 180-day period. It's not technically a visa; more like a quick online check costing 20 euros (about $22) per adult, with applicants under 18 or over 70 paying nothing. Once approved, it lasts three years or until your passport expires, whichever comes first.

But it's not running yet. ETIAS was supposed to follow the rollout of Europe's new biometric Entry/Exit System (EES), which launched earlier this year and has been hit by software bugs and lengthy delays. As a result, the EU has pushed ETIAS back, and its official site states plainly that no applications are being collected. In practical terms: nothing has changed about entering Europe. Your passport is all you need.

Scammers, naturally, have spotted an opening. More than 150 websites are already selling "ETIAS authorisations" that don't exist. They typically copy the look and domain style of official EU pages and manufacture urgency to push you into paying quickly. Hand over your details and you risk losing money, having your data misused, or worse — identity theft. Even Frontex, the EU's border agency, warns that once ETIAS does launch, commercial third-party sites may charge inflated fees and mishandle your personal information, so the official EU portal will be the safest route.

One common point of confusion: ETIAS is not the same as the UK's ETA. The British ETA is real, live right now, and required for most visitors to the UK, Jersey, Guernsey and the Isle of Man. It costs £20 (around $26) and permits stays of up to six months. So if Britain is on your itinerary, do apply for an ETA. If continental Europe is your destination, you currently need to do nothing.

The practical takeaway is simple. Ignore any site offering a European travel waiver today — it's either a scam or an overpriced middleman for a system that hasn't launched. Bookmark the official EU travel page and check it before your trip; when ETIAS goes live in 2027, you'll apply there, pay the standard fee, and be done in minutes. And if something online demands payment for a document you can't yet legally obtain, treat that as your cue to close the tab.

Story via The Points Guy.