Frontex | Border checks

The border checks programme focuses on controls carried out at border crossing points (BCPs). The challenge here is to ensure that Member States implement efficient and effective border checks at their external border, which are of a comparable level, thus guaranteeing that no weak spots in the borders can readily be identified. Activities in this area also strive to advance the aims of a package of EU initiatives collectively called Smart Borders.

One of the main areas of interest under the border checks programme concerns the identification of best practices in biometric verification and/or identification solutions for use by Automated Border Control (ABC) systems, usually installed in large “hub” airports. In this respect, Frontex activities have laid the foundations for enhanced investments in ABC technologies by fostering a better understanding of how these systems work and how they can help to manage any trade-offs between passenger facilitation and security, while guaranteeing that the technology used is cost-effective.

The Visa Information System (VIS), which makes possible the exchange of data on short-stay visas among Member States, went live in October 2011. A fully operational and developed VIS is a prerequisite to making border checks more efficient and thereby enhancing security, for example by helping to avoid identity theft. Thus, Frontex endeavours to help border management authorities identify, and also address, the challenges linked to the practical use of the system.

An increasingly important area of research and development (R&D) work is the processing of Advance Information, including Advance Passenger Information and Passenger Name Records. These enable Member States to carry out checks on passengers before they reach the border. A key objective here is facilitating the decision-making and development processes of setting up an Advance Information System in Member States not already having one. Another aim is to help build better regulatory foundations for such systems within the EU by providing feedback to policy makers.

Similarly, Frontex will continue to encourage research on countering document and identity fraud, particularly in regard to electronic travel documents, and to enhance the ability of border management authorities to check biometric data and improve the detection of deceptive behaviour at BCPs.

A longer-term goal is to shape the future of border checks by researching — in close contact with Member States and industry — how to integrate different information management systems and tools towards the framing of a “virtual border” concept.