theForum » Travel » Travelling to Europe » Travel to Europe (Amsterdam) whilst on SOR

RE: Travel to Europe (Amsterdam) whilst on SOR

marcovanba — Tue, 16 Dec 2025 12:00:55 GMT

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[b]punter99 - 16 Dec 25 10:59 AM[/b]

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[b]CB Root - 15 Dec 25 11:24 AM[/b]

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[b]Harmless - 4 Dec 25 2:03 PM[/b]

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[b]Was - 25 Sep 22 9:59 AM[/b]

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[b]punter99 - 24 Sep 22 11:44 AM[/b]

Terrible system. Glad it no longer applies to us.

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This is only temporary until ETIAS is launched which will effectively stop me traveling to the EU even though I am not on the SOR and my conviction is spent. Under the old "terrible system", I'd have no problems entering Europe.

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Why will it?

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I assume it is because of the presumption that, under ETIAS, non-EU citizens/residents convicted of certain offences within the last 15 years will by default be refused leave to enter the Schengen Zone. If the poster falls into this category then this will effectively stop them travelling, or risk denial at port of entry and immediate deportation back to the UK. Enough to put a cramp in anybody's holiday plans !

ETIAS is going live Q4 26 as far as I recall, so would need to travel in the first 3 quarters of next year to avoid issues (assuming PPU has no objections to the planned trip).

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We still do not know for certain, how ETIAS will treat people with convictions.

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I would have thought it would not be an automatic ban on all entry. Perhaps similar to the US etc you would have to apply for a visa. I have a fraud conviction which I was sentenced for 11 years ago (spent 5 years) and spend quite a bit of time in Europe. But I guess it will all become clear soon enough.

Travel to Europe (Amsterdam) whilst on SOR

ImJack — Tue, 16 Dec 2025 12:00:55 GMT

Hi
I was able to travel to Amsterdam on Eurostar (Sept 2022) without issue. First time abroad since conviction three years ago.

A few things:

I was told that ALL people under visor get a passport marker, Unlock page suggests its an option... although Kent police do seem to peddle misinformation sometimes.
I heard from this page I think, that Eurostar block anyone with a criminal record (very old story though)
Apparently Europe is short of security staff at the moment because staff are not getting the payments they have been getting.
We are now post-Brexit of course, and Kent Police tell me some countries in Europe can take different approaches? (especially Italy apparently?)
My offence was possession of indecent images, 18months suspended, in case the severity is relevant.
Customs/immigration checks are all in the UK, nothing in Europe. French Customs at St Pancreas.
I travelled to Europe after notifying the visor team as per procedure for a short weekend, on business/pleasure
(Dutch?) customs at Amsterdam were thorough, asked plenty of questions, but this seemed to be the same approach for everyone. Nothing controversial.

I was not stopped or questioned at any time. There did not appear to be any E-Gates on Eurostar, just manual checks.

Hope this helps you.

RE: Travel to Europe (Amsterdam) whilst on SOR

punter99 — Tue, 16 Dec 2025 10:59:56 GMT

[quote]

[b]CB Root - 15 Dec 25 11:24 AM[/b]

[quote]

[b]Harmless - 4 Dec 25 2:03 PM[/b]

[quote]

[b]Was - 25 Sep 22 9:59 AM[/b]

[quote]

[b]punter99 - 24 Sep 22 11:44 AM[/b]

Terrible system. Glad it no longer applies to us.

[/quote]

Why will it?

[/quote]

We still do not know for certain, how ETIAS will treat people with convictions.

RE: Travel to Europe (Amsterdam) whilst on SOR

AB2014 — Tue, 16 Dec 2025 09:44:44 GMT

First of all, there are two different markers that can be placed. One is automatic and is added to the UK border control system, so that the police know if/when you enter or leave the country. The second is the Interpol notice, which is discretionary. It has been said that some forces issue them automatically, while others go by the official policy set by the College of Policing. If you're MAPPA level 2 or 3, or if you're going to a Section 172 country, they will issue a green notice. Before Brexit, details were automatically added to the Schengen system as well, but those details were all deleted under the Brexit agreement, so the police now have to choose between a green notice and nothing.

As for ETIAS, the agency or agencies that process ETIAS applications do not have access to the UK criminal records system, so if anyone chooses not to disclose, there is no way for the destination country to check. Unless you are arrested, in which case they have grounds to contact ACRO for your information. If you're on the SOR when you apply and the ETIAS is granted, the police might suspect that you hadn't disclosed and either want proof that you did disclose or issue a green notice. It was reported in a different thread that a Schengen visa application doesn't include answering any disclosure questions, and application form that I saw online didn't ask, so the disclosure question is probably asked by individual countries if someone applies for residence there. Of course, once you have a visa, you don't need to bother with ETIAS.

RE: Travel to Europe (Amsterdam) whilst on SOR

CB Root — Mon, 15 Dec 2025 11:24:53 GMT

[quote]

[b]Harmless - 4 Dec 25 2:03 PM[/b]

[quote]

[b]Was - 25 Sep 22 9:59 AM[/b]

[quote]

[b]punter99 - 24 Sep 22 11:44 AM[/b]

Terrible system. Glad it no longer applies to us.

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Why will it?

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RE: Travel to Europe (Amsterdam) whilst on SOR

Harmless — Thu, 04 Dec 2025 14:03:57 GMT

[quote]

[b]Was - 25 Sep 22 9:59 AM[/b]

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[b]punter99 - 24 Sep 22 11:44 AM[/b]

Terrible system. Glad it no longer applies to us.

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Why will it?

RE: Travel to Europe (Amsterdam) whilst on SOR

Was — Sun, 25 Sep 2022 09:59:07 GMT

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[b]punter99 - 24 Sep 22 11:44 AM[/b]

Terrible system. Glad it no longer applies to us.

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RE: Travel to Europe (Amsterdam) whilst on SOR

punter99 — Sat, 24 Sep 2022 11:44:24 GMT

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[b]ImJack - 23 Sep 22 4:32 PM[/b]

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Very helpful. Thanks. People only tend to report instances where travel doesn't go to plan, so this is extremely useful.

As for passport markers, that is something which will flag up when you apply for a new passport, but it is not a physical marker on the passport, which can be seen by customs in other countries. The old system of Schengen alerts, was the database which used to identify SO, but it no longer contains details of British SO.

As for Eurostar, there may be something in their terms and conditions, but they have no way of checking who has a criminal record, so it is unenforceable in practice.

In the past, people who were stopped and questioned, because of the Schengen alert system, may have thought, wrongly, that there was a marker on their passport, or they were told they were being refused travel on Eurostar, after customs saw the Schengen alert come up and wrongly interpreted it, to mean they could not travel.

In fact, the Schengen alert does not give details of the person's conviction, or tell customs to refuse them entry, it only highlights them as a 'person of interest' to the authorities, but without telling them why the person is of interest. Hence the unpredictability of the custom agent's response. Some people are waved through, others are questioned, and all because customs don't know what the alert means. Terrible system. Glad it no longer applies to us.