What are French PARAFE gates and how do they relate to EES and ETIAS?

Reader question: Connexion articles sometimes mention PARAFE gates in relation to travel across borders, but I am not sure what they are. Do they have something to do with the EES and ETIAS?

PARAFE is the word the French authorities use for a passport e-gate.

Also known as portique [gateway] PARAFE or sas [transit space] PARAFE, it stands for PAssage RApide aux Frontières Extérieures (rapid passage at the external borders).

The gates check people in and out of France’s external Schengen borders (such as when arriving from the UK or leaving France to go there) and they avoid the need to join a traditional ‘other passports’ queue.

We often mention them in articles about border procedures, including in connection with EES (European Entry/Exit System), the EU’s new digital border scheme.

These gates can be used by EU/EEA/Swiss citizens – similarly to traditional ‘EU’ passport lanes – but also by citizens of a number of developed nations, such as Britons, Americans, Canadians, Australians and New Zealanders.

As such, they may help these citizens avoid getting caught up in long passport booth queues linked to EES-related checks.

See here for the full list of countries, but note that some countries are authorised to use the gates both when entering and leaving the Schengen area and some only when leaving.

They can only be used by over-12s on entry and over-18s on exit.

They work by scanning your passport and comparing your face to the image and data on the passport. They require a biometric (chipped) passport to work but most modern passports are in this format.

How this combines with EES and Etias

Prior to EES, the French border police said that Britons, Americans etc who were only visiting the Schengen area could use the e-gates, but they should also look out for a border guard to ask for a passport stamp.

In theory, the EES has now removed the need for stamps, barring any occasions when the system breaks down.

EES involves an EU database entry being created for a traveller with their passport information, and usually also including the taking of a scan of the right-hand fingerprints and a facial image (however, at some borders this ‘biometric’ element is still not being completed due to pre-registration self-service kiosks not being ready).

The system then also tracks the person’s comings and goings from the Schengen area and respect of the 90/180 days rule.

The government says that when available, Britons and Americans may now use PARAFEs again because they have been configured to recognise people who are registered in EES. 

If, however, you have never registered in EES, you may have to join a traditional passport queue to be entered in EES, rather than use the PARAFE, unless directed otherwise on site.

Where available, visitors may be asked to visit a kiosk or use a special tablet computer to register in EES and/or confirm identity, prior to entering a PARAFE.

Initially, after EES began, the government said non-EU foreigners living in France could no longer use the PARAFEs, but it states that this is now possible again. 

It has not been clarified exactly how the system distinguishes between foreign travellers eligible for EES and those (residents) who are not.

At Nice airport, where all Britons and Americans were recently being directed through exit PARAFEs, police told The Connexion: “The alphanumeric data of passengers using PARAFE gates who are eligible for EES is recorded directly in EES [by the PARAFE], pending the full operational launch of the kiosks and the expected data flow between the kiosks and PARAFE gates.

"To determine whether a person is already registered, the EES database is consulted.

"Travellers with residency cards can continue to use PARAFE gates as normal because they are not affected by EES.

"This is a temporary arrangement that is only possible as we are not collecting passengers’ biometric data."

Where are PARAFE gates found?

French PARAFE gates are found at the following airports:

• Roissy-Charles de Gaulle

• Orly

• Bâle-Mulhouse

• Bordeaux

• Lyon

• Marseille

• Nice

…and these trains stations:

• Gare du Nord (Eurostar)

• London St Pancras, at the French border controls (Eurostar)

• Coquelles, near Calais (Eurotunnel)

• Folkestone, UK, at the French border controls (Eurotunnel)

…and at the port of Calais.

Is there a link with the forthcoming ETIAS scheme?

Not specifically. 

ETIAS is designed to build on top of EES, and to come into operation in the last quarter of this year.

Some of the same people who are required to register in EES will also be asked to complete this formality, consisting of an online application for authorisation to enter the Schengen area.

It will not concern visitors who need a short-term Schengen visa to come to France or the EU, as that would only double up the same information. As with EES, it also does not concern foreign people who live in the EU as their main home.

ETIAS is not intended to create extra border complications other than the need to apply for and obtain permission prior to travel, if you are in a relevant group. Once obtained, authorisation will be electronically stored in the EU systems and linked to your passport.

Since PARAFE gates are apparently already set up to distinguish people subject to EES from those who are not, due to residency status, it is hoped that this will also be the case for ETIAS and that there will be no change in the ability to use the gates.

I went through Nice recently but there were no e-gates – why might this be?

Availability of e-gates depends on the gates being turned on by the border police, and decisions on whether to do so and how many to open are left to their discretion. 

As e-gates do require supervision, they may not always be used at quiet times or on days when staffing is reduced.