Will citizens of Bosnia and Herzegovina have to pay seven euros each time they enter neighboring Croatia or other European countries, as of 2025, because of a "new EU security system"? No, that's not true. A new travel authorisation system for visa-exempt travelers, called ETIAS, will be implemented in 2025 to enter specific European countries, including Croatia. When applying to travel using the official ETIAS website, travellers will be charged an application fee of seven euros. However, the ETIAS travel authorisation will be valid for three years or until the passport expires, whichever comes first. Citizens of Bosnia and Herzegovina will then be able to leave and return as many times as they want in three years, for seven euros.
The claim appeared in a video (archived here) published on TikTok by @dj.daki21 (archived here) on March 14, 2024, and was repeated (archived here) by the same user on March 15, 2024. The claim stated, as translated from Bosnian to English by Lead Stories staff:
From next year, entry from Bosnia and Herzegovina to Croatia will cost 7 euros each time. The new EU security system is to blame for everything.
This is what the post looked like on TikTok at the time of writing:
(Source: TikTok screenshot taken on Tue Mar 19 2024 15:21:31 CET)
According to the official site of ETIAS (archived here), the European Travel Information and Authorisation System is the European Commission's U.S. style electronic travel authorisation system for visitors from countries (archived here) that are currently not part of the EU. The EU wants to strengthen its border security as well as digitally screen and track travellers entering and leaving EU countries. When applying using the official ETIAS website, travellers will be charged a fee of seven euros (archived here). The application fee is non-refundable; you can't get a refund if your ETIAS application is unsuccessful. Applicants under 18 or over 70 will be exempt from this payment. Also exempt are EU citizens' family members and non-EU nationals who have the right to move freely throughout the European Union.
However, travel authorisation will be valid for three years (archived here) or until the end of the travel document's validity - whichever comes first. If the passport is valid for two years, ETIAS will also be valid for two years. ETIAS is required for citizens of countries that currently enjoy visa-free travel to the Schengen Area. This includes countries like the United States, Canada, Australia, and Japan.
ETIAS will go into effect in mid-2025 (archived here). The rules for visa-free travel to Europe will change for travellers coming from approximately 60 countries and territories, including Bosnia and Herzegovina.
