Eu-LISA and ETIAS

WHAT IS eu-LISA?

The European Union Agency for the Operational Management of Large-Scale IT Systems in the Area of Freedom, Security and Justice (eu-LISA) is an agency of the European Union (EU) established in 2011 to ensure fulltime functionality of large-scale IT systems within the area of freedom, security and justice (AFSJ), that serve as a tool in the implementation of the asylum, border management and migration policies of the Union. Its activities began on December 1st, 2012.

The current mandate, that was ruled in 2018, ensures the Agency’s capacity to project, develop and upgrade information systems relevant to European security, border management and migration; furthermore, such mandate, as compared to the previous one, broadens the goals of the Agency’s tasks on fields such as research, development, testing and also on the possibility to foster the development of pilot projects.

The headquarters of eu-LISA are in Tallinn, Estonia. The Agency also has its operational center is in Strasbourg, France and a technical backup site in St Johann im Pongau, Austria, and a liaison office in Brussels, Belgium. The current executive director is Krum Garkov, who assumed his role in November 2012.

Eu-LISA’s Responsibilities

The primary function of eu-LISA is to strengthen European security through technology, namely Information Technology, and provide relevant and up-to-date information regarding possible security or health threats posed by Non-EU/Schengen visitors.

While maintaining and improving the current systems, and developing new ones as well, eu-LISA must at all times strictly adhere to all regulations regarding data protection and ensure every applicant’s personal information is safely and securely stored. As of June 2022, eu-LISA has also signed up to the Cooperation Plan for 2022 – 2024 under whose terms the agency will provide training on the use of their IT systems to members of law enforcement agencies from within the European Union and Schengen Area Countries.

eu-LISA and the AFSJ Information Systems

As of 2012, eu-LISA has played a crucial part in the management and creation of Information Technology Systems and Databases that are of vital importance for the security of the European Union. Among such systems are the already operational Eurodac, SIS and VIS, as well as other systems that are currently under development, such as ECRIS-TCN, EES and ETIAS.

eu-LISA works side by side with Member States, European Institutions and other AFSJ Agencies to make sure that the technical and procedural solutions they provide do not limit to covering business requirements but that they also manage to reinforce consistency in technically feasibility.

On top of everything, eu-LISA’s goal is also to ensure the interoperability and compliance with data protection standards of all IT system under its management, whilst providing improved and secure access to EU Member State authorities to all the profiled information.

Eu-LISA is currently in charge of monitoring, developing and managing, among many, the following AFSJ Information Systems:

Eurodac –

Eurodac is the European Dactyloscopy Database that help in the processing of European asylum applications. It is a centralized database that collects, stores and manages the digitalized fingerprint records of asylum seekers and irregular migrants. Its main scope is to assist the Member State responsible for examining an asylum application in determining its legitimacy. Eurodac indeed aids the detection of multiple asylum applications and hence reduces cases of multiple and/or not legitimate applications. Law enforcement authorities and Europol as well can access the system – under strict regulations – so as to detect individuals connected to terrorist activities and/or other serious criminal offences.

SIS II – the second-generation Schengen Information System

The Schengen Information System (SIS) is an IT system, which serves as a support tool to foster internal security through the exchange of information on persons and objects between a number of European and EU Member State’s Law Enforcement Agencies. Since the Schengen area has no internal borders, SIS assists national authorities of the Schengen Area Countries and other EU Member Countries in sharing information with their counterparts when carrying out border checks, so as to fight against cross-border crime and terrorism. As far as SIS II is concerned, eu-LISA recently launched the Automated Fingerprint Identification System (AFIS), which allows biometric search feature, basically allowing for the identification of persons of interest by solely using their fingerprints.

VIS – the Visa Information System

The Visa Information System (VIS) is a large-scale IT system, supporting the functional and effective enforcement of EU’s common visa policy while facilitating border controls and consular cooperation and data sharing throughout Europe. The system enables relevant national authorities to consult data, including biometrics, that could be important when evaluating short-stay visa applications to the Schengen Area. The system helps discourage the phenomenon of so-called “visa shopping” and unlawful migration while also creating a basis for the prevention and management of possible threats to internal security of Member States.

Most recently The European Commission has proposed changes to the current mandate that would than expand the scope of VIS by adding long stay-visas and residence permits to the system. Such functions would allow for more thorough background checks on visa applicants, thus filling security data gaps through a better and more detailed information exchange between Member States.

EES – the Entry/Exit System

The Entry/Exit System (EES) is system currently being developed by eu-LISA that will enable the recording of entry and exit of third country nationals (TCN) to and from the Schengen Area. The system aims to replace the current practice of manual passports stamping with an electronic registration in a central database of biographic and biometric information, as well as the date and place of entry/exit for short-terms visits.

EES will help Member States to cope with the increasing travelers flows without having to hire and train additional border officers. The system will allow for a better overlook on authorized stays and to easily identify possible over-stayers.

ETIAS – the European Travel Information and Authorization System

The European Travel Information and Authorization System (ETIAS) is a new IT-based system that will soon establish and regulate the functioning of a Visa Waiver program for short term visitors of certain nationalities that do not require a Visa to access the Schengen Area. Resembling systems already operational in the USA, Canada, Australia, South Korea and many more a valid passport, a credit card and few personal information, including contact details, will be needed to submit one’s application to ETIAS. ETIAS will be linked to other eu-LISA managed systems since the information submitted for the Visa Waiver candidacy will be automatically processed through EU’s preexisting databases (Eurodac, SIS and VIS), future systems EES and ECRIS-TCN, and relevant Interpol databases. Such a real-time connection will enable advanced verification of potential security, irregular migration and public health risks.

ECRIS-TCN – the European Criminal Records Information System – Third-Country Nationals

The European Criminal Records Information System – Third Country Nationals (ECRIS-TCN), is being designed to be a centralized hit/no-hit system to enhance the existing EU criminal records database (ECRIS) on non-EU nationals that are now or previously were convicted in any of the European Union States. Once operational, the system is expected to allow Member States to quickly find out in which other Member State(s) information on previous convictions of a non-EU national is stored therefore providing judges, prosecutors, and other relevant authorities easy access to an exhaustive set of information on an individual’s criminal history, regardless of the Member State where that person was convicted in the past.