EU Entry/Exit System (EES) border checks have caused long waits for holidaymakers at airports across Europe since they were introduced last year.
There have been bottlenecks at airports and ferry ports across the continent due to issues with the system, with nations like Spain and Portugal among the worst hit.
The Times revealed that sources close to the European commissioner for sustainable transport and tourism, have said he has given private assurances that blanket border checks will be paused to alleviate travel chaos this summer.
It is understood that the commissioner, Apostolos Tzitzikostas, is pushing to extend a derogation that allows officials to suspend the new border controls beyond a deadline of September 6.
Graeme Buck, ABTA’s Director of Communications, said: “This summer, there have been some improvements in terms of queues, which suggests the contingency measures have been used and have been helping. Extending these arrangements would allow destinations to respond if queues start to build, helping to minimise disruption for travellers.”
The i Paper takes a look at all the hurdles travellers are facing and how it is possible to skip queues.
What is EES?
The system records when third-country passport-holders enter and exit the Schengen area.
It holds biometric data including fingerprints, photographs, details listed in passports, date and place of entry and exit, and refusals of entry.
Passport control officers will take a photo of a person’s face and/or scan a person’s fingerprints when they first enter or exit the area.
The EES biometrics are recorded in a digital file which is valid for three years.
The system is used by 25 of the 27 EU countries, plus the four non-EU countries in Schengen – Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, and Switzerland. It is not used for visits to Ireland or Cyprus, as neither country is in the Schengen Area.
It applies to third-country nationals who possess a short-stay visa and third-country nationals who do not need a visa for visits to the Schengen area of up to 90 days in any 180-day period. EES applies to adults and children aged 12 and over; under-12s will not have their fingerprints taken.
The checks are required for most UK passport holders and they have been introduced to increase border security and make border checks more efficient.
Queues at the Port of Dover which has suspended EES checks (Photo: Gareth Fuller/PA)What are the issues?
Initial registration for EES has been causing long queues and delays at border control – causing some travellers to miss their flights.
Elderly British travellers are being regularly rejected at the biometric kiosks because they have faded fingerprints, which is resulting in additional waits of up to two hours or longer.
At some airports, passengers are able to register their information at special kiosks.
But multiple people claim they have been turned away by the machines and forced to join a separate queue due to their prints not being recognised, The Daily Telegraph reports.
It is claimed they are being forced to queue for multiple hours as a result.
Angela Evans, who recently travelled to Palma de Mallorca in Spain, told the publication that EES kiosks in its airport’s arrivals hall failed to recognise her fingerprints.
She said: “I tried several times, on different machines and with assistance from a member of staff, but to no avail. My fingerprints would not register”.
Other travellers claim they are being forced to re-register for the EES system on multiple journeys because their data is being lost in the system – meaning they are caught up in long queues.
The airline industry’s main trade body, the International Air Transport Association, claims this has already resulted in waits of around four hours during peak periods and they believe in some airports this could increase to six hours over this summer.
There have also been reports that some EES kiosks have been unable to upload fingerprints and facial images to a central database, meaning the data is being deleted.
How to skip queues
In a bid to prevent congestion, some countries have turned off the system, giving passengers who travel through them respite from the queues.
Nations are able to do this due to a loophole in EU rules, which states they are able to do so in “exceptional circumstances” if queues get too long. Countries which opt to switch off the checks must notify EU border agencies why they decided to make the move.
French border authorities temporarily suspended the EES checks in May as Bank Holiday traffic built up.
Officials are currently doing EES checks manually for ferry passengers arriving by car because the self-service kiosks have technical problems caused by a French software issue.
Waiting times at Dover have been up to 55 minutes, with the average wait 20 minutes or less, The Times reports.
Other nations who have turned off the checks when necessary are Greece, Portugal and Spain, according to the UK travel industry body ABTA.
It said it had done a lot of work with nations and the European Commission, the European Union’s executive arm, to encourage the checks being switched off.
A spokesperson for ABTA also recommended, “there should be adequate numbers of functioning registration booths in place, as well as extra border staff on hand when needed at busier times”.
The spokesperson said: “This summer, there have been improvements in terms of queues which suggests a combination of these measures has been introduced, but shows the need for contingency plans to be extended beyond September, so the flexibilities can be used, if and when required, after the summer”.
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