EES is finally happening on 6 October 2024.

Obviously it will not affect most people on here because EU nationals/residents are exempt:

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/dec/19/eu-fingerprint-checks-uk-travellers-british-passengers-entry-exit-system-facial-scans

European Union's implementation of EES and ETIAS delayed until 2024 and 2025, respectively

On 19 October 2023, a spokesperson for eu-LISA, an EU agency responsible for IT systems in the area of migration, security and justice, announced that the implementation of the Entry/Exit System (EES) and European Travel Information and Authorisation System (ETIAS) will be delayed until Autumn 2024 and Spring 2025, respectively. The EES was originally scheduled to come into force in 2022. The launch date was previously delayed until May 2023 and then late 2023. The ETIAS was initially expected to go into effect in May 2023 and then delayed until November 2023. The new proposed dates for the implementation of the EES (Autumn 2024) and ETIAS (Spring 2025) are subject to change depending on the readiness of the respective IT systems.

The last sentance is very telling I’d be shocked if it didn’t slip again

Dates tend to slip, but this time should stick for most of EU states.
Some EU states will start operating EES sooner. Spain has announced EES operation by end of this month or end of Jan 24.
I have already noticed EES terminals next border guard kiosks in Spain. Looks like square mini bubble-gum machine with screen. :-)

Generally speaking, Spanish IT systems are better than most EU countries (usually because they are more recently introduced) so I would not be surprised to see the new travel systems up and running on time or earlier.

What I don't understand is what is going to happen to UK nationals with Spanish/Schengen residency. We are supposedly exempt from EES and ETIAS, but in that case we still need to be processed manually by showing our passport and residence document such as TIE. Unless Schengen countries make a special lane for just Schengen residents, we may end up in visa national queues which tend to move very slowly, as I have experienced when entering Schengen at CDG and connecting to a flight to Spain. Or will the new EES channel read our TIE and let us through? What about those who still have paper EU national residency document?

That has already been explained on EES legit website. Residents will be process manually.
There are no special lanes now for residents. Why should there be one with EES/ETIAS implementation? I can sense entitlement vibe.

That's interesting.

I do hope they hold off on implementing EES at the Gibraltar border until an agreement has been reached re Schengen membership.

That's my understanding too. I hope it will be possible for EU residents to branch off to the manual booth before the EES machines. I'm also hoping my British EU resident partner can join me in the EU national queue.

Without seeing the actual layout, it's hard to visualise it.

I just go through the EU citizen lane with the rest of my family who's Spanish and I don't see why that would change. If travelling alone maybe I could be told I had to queue up as a third-country national, also like now.

You won't be able to use automated gates and should join the queue to see a border guard in person, to show passport and residency document.

That advice has been given by the EU Commission.

I don't think it's entitlement vibe at all.

I can see perfectly well why someone legally resident in a country (and from a country whose nationals benefit from a visa waiver agreement, to boot) would assume that border formalities ought to be reduced to a minimum and that they wouldn't, therefore, expect to be queueing up in the slowest lane, behind the people subject to the strictest controls, who need visas to enter Schengen and get the full immigration scrutiny on arrival.

But that is what has been decreed.

As long as border control actually know what they are supposed to do.

We spent 20mins at one in October while trying to leave Barcelona for Australia.
Two guards were arguing about stamping or not stamping our passports due to having a TIE.
From what I could understand (about 10%) one guard said yes as we were leaving the EU but not going to the Uk so we needed a stamp.
The other said no, as we had TIE it was OK, but then said to me in English Oh your TIE says temporary, you do know if you leave we can stop you coming back?
It appeared that until we had a permanent TIE we were still just tourists with long stay permission..

I just said stamp the passport if thats what you want to do....So he did.

On the way back I asked to be stamped back in and was told no as I have a TIE...
And to be honest the queue at border control for 'any others' was quieter than the EU channel.......

So I just took my passport and we have an out but no back in stamp......Oh well...

Australia stamp you in, but as you must have an electronic visa, that kicks in and will alert them if you have overstayed (three months) when you try to leave.....

Sorry but can we get away from the semantics for a moment and get back to basics....

What is the point of all this?

Of the EES?

EES is just another way to control you....

The EU dont want criminals from outside the club coming in....\
So basically EVERY 3rd country, so around 160 countries nationals will have to comply with the rules.

Here you go.. Toilet reading......

​​​​​​https://home-affairs.ec.europa.eu/po...exit-system_en