New passport procedures
Discussion
According to the BBC this morning all passports will be scanned from today but the visual face-to-photo checks will be phased in.
April: 25% face-to-photo checks.
May: 50% face-to-photo checks.
By mid-June: 100% face-to-photo checks.
In the report it sounded like Eurotunnel was already running 100% face-to-photo checks having recruited 50 new staff. Apparently Eurotunnel say "No, (passengers) shouldn't expect longer queues. The investments we have made have been specifically made in the interests of customer service." We will see...
April: 25% face-to-photo checks.
May: 50% face-to-photo checks.
By mid-June: 100% face-to-photo checks.
In the report it sounded like Eurotunnel was already running 100% face-to-photo checks having recruited 50 new staff. Apparently Eurotunnel say "No, (passengers) shouldn't expect longer queues. The investments we have made have been specifically made in the interests of customer service." We will see...
Edited by //j17 on Wednesday 8th April 09:43
Storer said:
I used Eurotunnel last month and had the face-to-photo check carried out. They scan the passport first and then hold it up in front of you and spend a few seconds comparing the picture with what they see in front of them.
They have always done this on the French side when coming back to the UK. Will be interesting to see how this all works during the summer as the tunnel can be chaos when they decide to only open 3 or 4 booths!We went through Dover on Wednesday morning, the day the new checks were introduced. We travel to Belgium a lot and mostly don't see any British police checks going to France and you just drive past the booth...this time it was different...there was someone there to wave us past!!!! 
Maybe it was because it was the first day or something but for us it was no different. We arrived 35 mins before departure and went straight on. Might be different by June and I'll keep an eye on it as I go back and forwards!
Maybe it was because it was the first day or something but for us it was no different. We arrived 35 mins before departure and went straight on. Might be different by June and I'll keep an eye on it as I go back and forwards!
Passport inspection on exiting or entry to the UK has always been in force although applying it has been random in the past. This has been firmed up now so that passports will always be inspected on exit and entry.
What's really new is the government's requirement from 8 April that all passengers exiting the UK must provide API to the ferry company/Eurotunnel etc IN ADVANCE of travelling. Note that this requirement is being phased in, whatever that means.
Eurotunnel's website, for example, says that they will not accept API at the time of turning up for travel. So, turn up, no API submitted, no travelling looks like the way the rules operate. There is, presumably, some way of overcoming this on the day of travel on arrival at, say, Eurotunnel but I've not found anything about it. If operated this way and with many peeps not aware of the API requirement arriving on a busy day it could lead to queuing, missed boats/shuttles and much frustration, I assume.
So, it's exactly the same API requirement as that which has applied to air travel by most airlines to most countries for several years now.
R.
What's really new is the government's requirement from 8 April that all passengers exiting the UK must provide API to the ferry company/Eurotunnel etc IN ADVANCE of travelling. Note that this requirement is being phased in, whatever that means.
Eurotunnel's website, for example, says that they will not accept API at the time of turning up for travel. So, turn up, no API submitted, no travelling looks like the way the rules operate. There is, presumably, some way of overcoming this on the day of travel on arrival at, say, Eurotunnel but I've not found anything about it. If operated this way and with many peeps not aware of the API requirement arriving on a busy day it could lead to queuing, missed boats/shuttles and much frustration, I assume.
So, it's exactly the same API requirement as that which has applied to air travel by most airlines to most countries for several years now.
R.
For further info see here, for example. Worth looking into the FAQs too.
https://www.eurotunnel.com/uk/advance-passenger-in...
R.
https://www.eurotunnel.com/uk/advance-passenger-in...
R.
traveled last week via Eurotunnel and there was no additional delay in either direction to be honest, despite a fairly 'soft' request for API data pre-travel. By soft, i mean a polite request to fill in data (i didn't) and there was no additional checking or delay on either direction.
There was however security on the french border controls swiping car trims for drugs/explosives which is something I haven't seen in several years of using the service (often on the UK side but never French side).
There was however security on the french border controls swiping car trims for drugs/explosives which is something I haven't seen in several years of using the service (often on the UK side but never French side).
Hopefully this is only the usual press scaremongering, as it is close to a month old
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/road-and-ra...
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/road-and-ra...
I have booked eurotunnel and been asked to provide passport details prior to travel to significantly avoid delays on the day
I have to say that in my (approximately 30 crossings) experience of using the Eurotunnel over the last 10 years or so, security in general is incredibly lax compared to flying
My passport is sometimes waved, sometimes glanced at, sometimes properly checked, sometimes not even subject to a passport officer being present
In terms of physical car checks, I have once been asked to pull over and get out of the car whilst a relatively cursory check took place that included opening the boot but leaving all my luggage in place. I have on a few occasions had someone poke their arm inside whilst waving a stick which I think is a bomb detection (or possible drug detection ?) device around the steering wheel. Every other time, they haven't even looked at the car from a security point of view, let alone inspected. Yet on a plane, you can't even take your own bottle of water
I hate to say it but it amazes me that we don't have more incidents on the tunnel. When you think of how tight airport security is (well appears), it would be incredibly easy, if so inclined, to carry out some horrendous atrocities on the tunnel.
I have to say that in my (approximately 30 crossings) experience of using the Eurotunnel over the last 10 years or so, security in general is incredibly lax compared to flying
My passport is sometimes waved, sometimes glanced at, sometimes properly checked, sometimes not even subject to a passport officer being present
In terms of physical car checks, I have once been asked to pull over and get out of the car whilst a relatively cursory check took place that included opening the boot but leaving all my luggage in place. I have on a few occasions had someone poke their arm inside whilst waving a stick which I think is a bomb detection (or possible drug detection ?) device around the steering wheel. Every other time, they haven't even looked at the car from a security point of view, let alone inspected. Yet on a plane, you can't even take your own bottle of water
I hate to say it but it amazes me that we don't have more incidents on the tunnel. When you think of how tight airport security is (well appears), it would be incredibly easy, if so inclined, to carry out some horrendous atrocities on the tunnel.
Just returned from a long weekend in France, travelling Portsmouth to Caen. Outbound early Thursday passports checked at check in as usual and that was it, several cars pulled in for a check but that's usual. Passport check in France, so no change there. Back Monday afternoon, passports at check in and checked again at Portsmouth. I timed how long it took from starting the car to getting out of the port, approx. 20 minutes. Of course that depends on whether you're first or last on the ferry but that doesn't seem too bad to me. Be interesting to see how long it takes in June.
jonby said:
I hate to say it but it amazes me that we don't have more incidents on the tunnel. When you think of how tight airport security is (well appears), it would be incredibly easy, if so inclined, to carry out some horrendous atrocities on the tunnel.
Trains are a bit limited in how easy they are to divert though. It's quite difficult to hit the palace of Westminster with a Eurostar.marshalla said:
jonby said:
I hate to say it but it amazes me that we don't have more incidents on the tunnel. When you think of how tight airport security is (well appears), it would be incredibly easy, if so inclined, to carry out some horrendous atrocities on the tunnel.
Trains are a bit limited in how easy they are to divert though. It's quite difficult to hit the palace of Westminster with a Eurostar.
The new checks will have no impact on time it takes to get back into the UK, there are no changes which affect the return leg.
The change is that passports should be checked when exiting the UK on top of the current checks on entry to France. We all know that most of the time the French just glance at the outside of the passport and wave you through, in theory the check on the UK side will be more thorough and could result in delays and queues building up if they don't staff-up to suit.
The change is that passports should be checked when exiting the UK on top of the current checks on entry to France. We all know that most of the time the French just glance at the outside of the passport and wave you through, in theory the check on the UK side will be more thorough and could result in delays and queues building up if they don't staff-up to suit.
We went to France on Sat morning via Eurotunnel and were waived straight through at Folkestone, they didn't even look at passports. Coming back on Sunday however was a different story..........
We arrived in the queue at Calais at 17.50 and just about made our train at 20.20. It was the UK border control that was the slowest bit. The passports were scanned, the pictures were scrutinised and we were then asked how many passengers were in the car - a Ferrari 328 GTS - I was so tempted to reply:-
"just the 2 of us, oh plus the really really skinny person who has squeezed in behind the seats and in front of the roof"
We arrived in the queue at Calais at 17.50 and just about made our train at 20.20. It was the UK border control that was the slowest bit. The passports were scanned, the pictures were scrutinised and we were then asked how many passengers were in the car - a Ferrari 328 GTS - I was so tempted to reply:-
"just the 2 of us, oh plus the really really skinny person who has squeezed in behind the seats and in front of the roof"
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