UK travelers will be able to use e-gates at German airports in the future thanks to a new agreement made between British Prime Minister Keir Starmer and German Chancellor Friedrich Merz on July 17. The UK government says 3.2 million British travelers visited Germany in 2023, with numbers growing steadily since the Covid pandemic.
Germany will roll out the first phase of e-gates access for UK travelers by the end of August, starting with frequent travelers such as those with family in Germany or who travel regularly for business. Access for all UK nationals will be possible once Germany has completed technical updates to its entry systems as it introduces the new EU’s Entry/Exit System.
The new agreement follows the successful UK-EU Summit in May, where the UK and EU made clear that there were no legal barriers to even more EU countries allowing UK citizens to use e-gates at airports.
The UK has also secured e-gates access for UK citizens traveling to Bulgaria. Other airports have also opened up access, including Faro in Portugal and Prague in the Czech Republic. Estonia’s Tallinn Airport has confirmed it will open up access in 2026. The government is continuing to work with other countries to secure e-gate access for British travelers.
In related news, New Zealand has opened up e-gate access for 11 more countries