Brits to be charged to enter Portugal, Spain, France and Greece later than planned as new date is set

A travel fee for Brits looking to holiday in Europe has been pushed back until 2023.

The original date for popular tourist destinations in the Schengen Area to start charging a travel fee was September 2022 but that has not been pushed back over a year.

Portugal, Spain, France and Greece were among the countries due to implement the fee of €7, which will now come into effect in November 202 for those aged between 18 and 70.

Since Brexit, which was decided after a referendum in 2016, Brits have been allowed to freely roam the EU with no extra cost, thanks to the EU’s freedom of movement.

But as of November next year, Brits wishing to travel into Europe will now have to fill out additional forms before entering as well as pay the €7 charge.

This applies for countries within the Schengen Area, which totals around 26 countries. A simple online application is all it takes to enter from next year.

After filling out the online application form, the system will conduct checks where, in a large majority of cases, users will receive travel authorisation.

In some cases, where further checks will need to be conducted on a traveller, being issued with travel authorisation may take up to 30 days.

These are the countries within the Schengen Area:

• Austria
• Belgium
• Czech Republic
• Denmark
• Estonia
• Finland
• France
• Germany
• Greece
• Hungary 
• Iceland
• Italy
• Latvia
• Liechtenstein
• Lithuania
• Luxembourg
• Malta
• The Netherlands
• Norway
• Poland
• Portugal
• Slovakia
• Slovenia
• Spain
• Sweden
• Switzerland

All of these countries will require the forms to be filled out, and will charge a fee to enter their country from late next year.

An exact date has not yet been set, but we now know that it will be in the month of November in 2023.

However, Brits may not face charges until 2024 as travellers will then benefit from a six-month transition period while border authorities run information campaigns on the new requirements, according to The Guardian.