British travellers heading to Europe this summer face significantly longer passport queues, with wait times tripling at some major hubs due to the roll-out of the European Union’s new digital border system.
The digital Entry Exit System (EES) requires non-EU citizens entering the 29-country Schengen area to register their fingerprints and facial photos upon arrival. While designed to streamline security, the new process has caused hours-long delays at passport control in several European airports, sometimes causing travellers to miss their flights home.
In Rome, the Chief Aviation Officer of Fiumicino Airport, Ivan Bassato, revealed that passport check times for UK nationals have risen from an average of seven minutes to 20 minutes. Bassato stated that while integrating the registration process with existing e-gates improved operations, the current wait times remain unacceptable. He urged that aspects of the system must be fixed urgently.
The airport found its €12 million ($13.7 million) self-service kiosks impractical for handling large passenger volumes. Consequently, UK nationals are now registering their biometric data at e-gates instead, though children under the age of 12 must still be processed manually by border officers.
Similar disruptions have been reported elsewhere. Ryanair has advised passengers to allow extra travel time and prepare for extended waits due to the "failed EES rollout." Meanwhile, border police at Faro Airport in Portugal acknowledged that the system has suffered from bugs, though they insisted queues would clear quickly.
In contrast, the European Commission maintained that disruption remains limited at most EU airports and pledged to continue supporting member states with the implementation of the system.