ETIAS Has No Start Date, and Thailand's Visa Rethink: Planning Travel AccessETIAS Has No Start Date, and Thailand's Visa Rethink: Planning Travel Access

Two separate stories this week show how unsettled travel access has become. In Europe, the long-planned ETIAS travel authorisation still has no announced start date. In Thailand, a September overhaul of visa exemptions is now being partly reconsidered. For anyone weighing a second passport on the strength of visa-free access, the lesson is that access is a moving target, and that a ranking position or a launch date is not a plan.

ETIAS: the 2026 window has gone

ETIAS is the online authorisation that visa-exempt travellers will need before entering the Schengen area. According to the Schengen Traveler ETIAS tracker, a private information site updated on 27 October, no start date has been announced as of 26 October 2026. The tracker says the European Commission's April 2026 guidance had pointed to the last quarter of 2026, with the exact date to follow later in the year.

The same tracker reports that the Commission's ETIAS page now says only that the system is not in operation and that no applications are being collected. It attributes the removal of the Q4 2026 wording to a mid-July update and cites Financial Times reporting from early July about the timetable. It describes independent reporting as pointing to 2027, but that is the tracker's reading rather than an official statement. We have not seen a Commission announcement of a new date.

The practical points, as the tracker summarises them, are that the Commission has said it will announce the start date several months ahead, and that a transitional period follows launch before the authorisation becomes mandatory. The tracker also warns that any site currently taking ETIAS applications is not genuine. Travellers should rely on the Commission's own pages for the definitive position.

Thailand: an overhaul that is being second-guessed

Asia offers the opposite case: a rules change that has already happened and is now under pressure. Thai Examiner reports that Thailand's visa overhaul took effect on 15 September, after Cabinet approval in May and publication in the Royal Gazette on 31 August. It says the previous 60-day visa-exemption scheme covering 93 countries and territories was abolished, shorter exemptions were reorganised, and fewer nationalities qualify for visas on arrival.

The publication reports that Mexico, Colombia and Uzbekistan were among the markets affected, and that the tourism minister is now seeking to restore 15-day visa-free entry for those three. It also cites falling arrivals, down 4.12%, and rising visitor numbers in Vietnam. Those figures are the publication's; we have not verified them against Thai government statistics, and the outcome of the minister's request is not yet known.

The point for investors is not Thailand specifically. A change approved in May took effect in September, and the affected travellers were left rebooking and re-applying for visas. Anyone who relies on a particular passport for frequent short trips to one destination is exposed to the same kind of change.

What this means when comparing passports

Passport indices count destinations at a point in time. They do not capture pending authorisation schemes such as ETIAS, or the risk that a destination narrows its exemptions. Our earlier piece on how to read Henley and Arton covers the methodology, and the October Henley update shows how quickly positions shift.

A few questions are more useful than a headline score:

• Which destinations do you actually travel to, and how often?

• Are those destinations visa-free, visa-on-arrival or subject to an authorisation that must be obtained in advance?

• Is any change pending, such as a new electronic authorisation, that could alter the process within your planning horizon?

• Does the passport also bring residence rights, or only short-stay access?

The last question matters. Short-stay access is the most volatile feature of any passport. Residence rights, tax position and the rules on holding more than one nationality tend to have a larger long-term effect, and they differ by country. We looked at the latter in Dual Citizenship in 2026.

Where Türkiye fits

Turkish citizenship by investment is one of the routes people compare on access grounds. Whether a Turkish passport suits a given family depends on the destinations they need, and Schengen entry in particular is not automatic; see our FAQ on whether a Turkish passport gives Schengen access. Multi Mulk advises on Turkish citizenship by investment, and offers a free written eligibility review for applicants who want to understand their position before committing.

For readers weighing Türkiye against other options, Multi Mulk also helps clients choose a second passport and compare programmes side by side, including the Caribbean alternatives.

What to watch

• Any Commission announcement of an ETIAS start date, which it says will come several months before launch.

• Whether Thailand restores exemptions for Mexico, Colombia and Uzbekistan, and whether other nationalities are reviewed.

• The next passport-index updates, which will reflect changes only once they are in force.

Programme rules and entry requirements change often, and the right answer depends on nationality, travel pattern and family circumstances. Anyone considering a second passport on access grounds should speak to an adviser through our contact page and check the current official rules for each destination before travelling.

Sources

• Schengen Traveler — ETIAS Launch Date: Latest Updates & Timeline (2026)
• Thai Examiner — Minister scrambles to offer 15 day visa on arrival to smaller markets

Cover photo: ClickerHappy on Pixabay.