Getting your hand scanned at customs when travelling

Travelling to the EU now the EES scheme is active

Many people worry about the hand scanning, scanning all four fingers of the right hand may not be possible for Dupuytren patients.

But there are rules for this!

Article 17.1.c: fingerprint data from the right hand, where present, and otherwise the corresponding fingerprint data from the left hand

Article 17.4: Persons for whom fingerprinting is physically impossible shall be exempt from the requirement to give fingerprints.

However, where the physical impossibility is of a temporary nature, that fact shall be recorded in the EES and the person shall be required to give the fingerprints on exit or at the subsequent entry. This information shall be deleted from the EES once the fingerprints have been given. The border authorities shall be entitled to request further clarification on the grounds for the temporary impossibility to give fingerprints. Member States shall ensure that appropriate procedures guaranteeing the dignity of the person are in place in the event of difficulties encountered in the capturing of fingerprints.

Article 17.5: Where the person concerned is exempt from the requirement to give fingerprints pursuant to paragraphs 3 or 4, the specific data field shall be marked as ‘not applicable’. [Paragraph 3 Article 17: Children under the age of 12 shall be exempt from the requirement to give fingerprints.]

Article 23: …If the verification of the facial image fails, the verification shall be carried out using fingerprints and vice versa.

And from the EU-Lisa report: In total, 978 940 third-country nationals were exempt from giving fingerprints in the first quarter of 2026, as per Article 17(3) and 17(4) of the EES Regulation (children under the age of 12 and persons for whom fingerprinting is physically impossible).

So there is a provision, there should be understanding, we should be treated with dignity. One important thing: Mention your hand problem BEFORE queuing up for the fingerprints, so you can be directed to a different queue for facial recognition scans.

Patient experiences at EU borders when travelling

Matthew:

“I have contractions on my left hand little finger and right hand ring and little finger. All operated on, in two stages, and the first operation is now redundant as my left hand little finger is now permanently at 90°.

I first encountered EES October 2025 Lisbon Portugal. The automatic machine couldn’t capture enough or consistent fingerprints on my right hand and like many other passengers but for differing reasons I was directed to a passport official. He was sympathetic to my difficulty in getting all 4 fingers of my right hand flat and passed me through with only two finger fingerprints recording.

I have subsequently been through Sardinia, Czech Republic and Croatia, with no more difficulty than my wife. That is to say, pretty smoothly.”

Maggie:

“I had a return trip to France in April. When asked to place all 4 fingers for fingerprinting, I said ‘I cant’ and showed my hand (little finger at 90 degrees). I was just allowed to go through without facial recognition process.”