Overview
- The Entry/Exit System (EES), rolled out fully in April 2026, requires non-EU nationals to register fingerprints and a facial image instead of a passport stamp, and several airports report much longer processing times since the change.
- Passenger videos this week from holiday hubs such as Corfu, Faro, Kos and Tivat show queues spilling into terminals and car parks with waits of up to hours under hot conditions.
- Airport officials cite repeated kiosk failures, data-upload bugs and insufficient border staffing as the main causes of the slowdowns rather than a single uniform fault at all airports.
- Airlines and airport bodies have asked the European Commission for broader, proactive powers to suspend or relax EES checks during peak periods, while the Commission has offered only limited, case-by-case flexibility and agreed to talks.
- Ryanair has publicly named recurring 'hotspot' airports and its chief executive Michael O'Leary has said flights will not wait for passengers stuck in EES queues, leaving travellers to allow much more time or risk missing flights.