How Long Does It Take to Apply for ETIAS?

The ETIAS application process will be very quick, as it is all completed online and a lot of the actions involved in processing the application and performed automatically, with no physical administration required.

The ETIAS form is short and only contains a few pages of questions and sets of information to complete, so it should take no longer than 20 minutes to complete it. You will need to have details such as your passport number with you when you complete your application, or it will take longer to complete the application.

Once you have completed the form, you should check through all of the details that you have provided, as any errors could result in the application getting refused. This could mean that you need to submit another application, or possibly require a visa instead of an ETIAS in order to travel to the Schengen Area.

Once you have submitted your ETIAS form online, you will need to wait for an email to confirm whether it has been approved or refused. The length of time this takes can vary, depending on specific details that you have provided, or there may be other delays such as technical problems that may delay the processing. However, in most cases, the application will get processed very quickly, usually within a day and in some cases in hours or even minutes.

The ETIAS is a great system because it takes so much less time than applying for a visa. If you need to apply for a visa, you will be required to arrange and attend an appointment at the embassy for the country that you are visiting. Then you will need to provide documents and certain evidence regarding your travel plans that the officials will use as part of the assessment to determine whether to approve the visa. If approved, your visa will then be issued to you at a later date, so the whole process can take weeks or even months in some cases. The application for ETIAS is completely digital, so you do not need to send paperwork, you simply upload photos directly into the application form, so there is no delay for posting documents.

If you are travelling to the Schengen Area for tourism or business for a period of fewer than 90 days, applying for an ETIAS is a much more convenient method for obtaining travel authorization.