Volume I · Updated 24 October 2026
The directory of digital border systems
Travel authorisations, passenger data, biometrics, ePassports and the standards behind them, defined plainly and listed with dates and official sources.
Travel authorisations
- Australia Electronic Travel Authority (subclass 601) and eVisitor (subclass 651)
Australia's ETA (601) is applied for only in the Australian ETA app for a AUD20 service fee. The eVisitor (651) is free for listed European passports.
- Canada electronic travel authorization (eTA)
Visa-exempt travellers flying to Canada need an eTA. It costs CAN$7 and lasts up to five years. Exemptions, conditional eligibility and the law.
- European Travel Information and Authorisation System (ETIAS)
ETIAS is not yet operating and collects no applications. Fee set at EUR 20, legal basis, databases checked and the latest start date reporting.
- Kenya Electronic Travel Authorisation (eTA)
Kenya's eTA explained: who runs it, who is exempt under the 2025 rules, processing time, the US$30 fee reported in 2024 and where to apply.
- Korea Electronic Travel Authorization (K-ETA)
K-ETA costs KRW 10,000 and is for visa-free visitors to Korea. Validity is 3 years from July 2023. A temporary exemption runs to 31 December 2026.
- New Zealand Electronic Travel Authority (NZeTA)
The NZeTA costs NZ$17 in the app or NZ$23 online, plus the NZD 100 visitor levy from 1 October 2024. Who needs it, validity and processing time.
- UK electronic travel authorisation (ETA)
The UK ETA costs £20, lasts 2 years or to passport expiry, and is needed by most visa-free visitors. Rollout dates, refusals and legal basis.
- US Electronic System for Travel Authorization (ESTA)
ESTA is required for Visa Waiver Program travel to the US. The fee is US$40.62 from 16 October 2026. Rules, eligibility and proposed app-only changes.
Passenger data
- Advance passenger information (API) and interactive API
What advance passenger information and interactive API are, what airlines send, the ICAO Annex 9 standards, UN resolutions and the EU API rules.
- EU Advance Passenger Information Regulations (EU) 2025/12 and 2025/13
Two EU regulations of 19 December 2024 set new API rules and a central router run by eu-LISA. In force 28 January 2025, full application later.
- EU PNR Directive (EU) 2016/681
The EU PNR Directive 2016/681: scope, passenger information units, five-year retention, the 2022 EU Court of Justice ruling and the Commission's reviews.
- Passenger name record (PNR) data
What PNR data is, how it differs from API, the ICAO PNR standards of 2020, the EU PNR Directive and the EU's PNR agreements with other countries.
- US CBP Advance Passenger Information System (APIS) and TSA Secure Flight
Airlines flying to the US send passenger manifests to CBP's APIS under 19 CFR 122.49a. TSA's Secure Flight matches passenger data against watch lists.
Biometrics and documents
- Biometric e-gates
How automated border e-gates check passports and faces, who can use UK ePassport gates and Australian SmartGates, and the EU rules under the EES.
- ePassports and the ICAO Public Key Directory (PKD)
How ePassports are digitally signed, how border systems check the chip, what the ICAO PKD does and what ICAO Doc 9303 covers.
- EU Entry/Exit System (EES)
The EES registers non-EU short-stay travellers with fingerprints and a facial image at Schengen borders. Fully operational since 10 April 2026.
- INTERPOL Stolen and Lost Travel Documents (SLTD) database
INTERPOL's SLTD database: what it holds, record and search figures, who can check it, I-Checkit for private partners and EU rules on SLTD checks.
Standards and bodies
- ICAO Annex 9 and the PNR SARPs
ICAO Annex 9 on facilitation and its passenger data chapter: API Standards 9.7 and 9.8, the 2020 PNR SARPs in Amendment 28, key dates and audit rules.
- UN Security Council resolution 2396 (2017)
UN Security Council resolution 2396 of 21 December 2017: its rules on API, PNR, watch lists, biometrics and INTERPOL, and how ICAO and the UN followed up.