Read the passage and mark the letter A, B, C or D on your answer sheet to indicate the best answer to each of the following questions from 3...

Read the passage and mark the letter A, B, C or D on your answer sheet to indicate the best answer to each of the following questions from 31 to 40.

        From October 2025, the EU’s Entry/Exit System (EES) begins replacing passport stamps with biometric records that tie a travel document to a person’s identity. By digitising entries and exits, authorities seek to modernise external-border management, curb identity fraud, and spot overstayers against the 90/180-day rule. [I] While the rollout is gradual, the system’s core logic is simple: automate checks at scale while retaining human oversight when needed. For first-time users, registration takes longer; repeat crossings are designed to be brisker as data are reused.

        At an initial registration, non-EU travellers scan their passport, enrol fingerprints and submit a facial image; on departure, details are verified against the EES database to confirm lawful stay. Subsequent journeys typically require facial verification only, since the system already holds the prints template. Children under 12 are registered but only photographed; no fees apply for EES. [II] Although the process is standardised, Member States can sequence adoption at their border points, provided they keep to the overall EES timeline.

        Checks occur at international airports, seaports, rail terminals and road crossings across the Schengen area. Particularities apply on the UK side of the Channel: at Dover, Folkestone (Eurotunnel) and London St Pancras (Eurostar), French officers conduct EES registration on departure from Britain. [III] A staggered start prioritises freight and coach traffic first, with passenger vehicles following later; operators emphasise kiosk assistance and routing redesigns. Where congestion spikes, officials retain a queue-busting contingency, temporarily easing non-essential steps so flows can recover before full checks resume.

        The real stress-test will coincide with peak holiday periods in 2026 as the system reaches full enforcement. If implemented as scheduled, ETIAS will oblige visa-exempt travellers to secure pre-travel authorisation for a €20 fee. [IV] Framed as a precursor to border crossing, that authorisation lasts three years or until passport expiry. In tandem, EES should cut stamp fraud and make overstay detection routine; yet the human factor – wayfinding, accessibility, staff proficiency – will still decide whether travellers experience the border as friction-light or needlessly labyrinthine.

(Adapted from “What the EU’s new biometric border rules mean for non-EU travellers”, France 24, Oct 9, 2025)

Question 31. The word precursor in paragraph 4 mostly means ______.

A. broadly derivative                                        B. immediately preceding

C. faintly analogous                                        D. loosely subordinate