New EU system tripling time to get through border, airport boss says

The introduction of the European Union’s new border control system has significantly increased the time it takes for British travelers to pass through passport checks, despite some improvements. According to Ivan Bassato, Chief Aviation Officer at Rome’s Fiumicino airport, the duration for UK nationals to clear border control has nearly tripled. This announcement comes alongside warnings from Ryanair, which has advised passengers heading to Europe this summer to anticipate longer waiting times.

At Portugal’s Faro airport, officials working with the Entry Exit System (EES) acknowledged that technical issues have plagued the system. Nonetheless, they assured the BBC that queues should diminish shortly. Meanwhile, the European Commission maintains that disruptions remain limited across most EU airports and pledged to continue providing full support to member states implementing the new system.

The EES is a digital system introduced to track non-EU travelers entering the Schengen area—a zone consisting of 29 European countries. Upon arrival, travelers must register their fingerprints and have a photograph taken, with these data points checked on departure. This procedure is often completed through automated kiosks, although border officers assist in certain cases, such as with children under 12. The rollout of this new infrastructure and process has been gradual since October.

Despite the digital advance, many European airports have experienced extensive queues at immigration, resulting in some passengers missing their flights. Ryanair has criticized the “failed EES rollout,” attributing it to unnecessary delays. In response, the airline urged UK travelers to “allow extra time for their journey and be prepared for extended waits at passport control.” Bassato noted that while reliance on self-service kiosks at Fiumicino airport was costly and impractical, the recent option for UK nationals to use passport e-gates has brought some improvement. However, with clearance times increasing from seven to twenty minutes, he emphasized the need for urgent fixes within the system to restore efficiency and reduce wait times

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