EU information systems supporting border control – a strong tool, but more focus needed on timely and complete data

Summary:

The abolishment of border checks at the internal Schengen borders reinforced the importance of effective control and surveillance of the Schengen area external borders. To help border guards control these, the EU has set up a number of information systems. Our audit examined whether the main EU information systems for internal security support border controls efficiently. We found that border guards are increasingly using and relying on the systems when performing border checks. However, some data is currently not included in the systems, while other data is either not complete or not entered in a timely manner. This reduces the efficiency of some border checks. We make a number of recommendations, e.g. that data quality procedures are improved and that delays in data entries and the time taken to correct identified weaknesses are reduced.

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