The worst airports in Europe for post-Brexit border queues ...Middle East

Increased airport checks from new EU border rules have led to concerns that holidaymakers could face fresh travel chaos this summer.

Since its rollout in October, the entry/exit system (EES) requires non-EU nationals travelling to Schengen Area countries to have photos and fingerprint scans.

The digital biometrics system, which will replace manual passport stamping, is designed to ensure non-EU nationals are not staying in the Schengen zone for more than 90 out of 180 days.

During a six-month phased rollout, third-country arrivals, including Britons, will still also have their passports stamped, but from April, the process is due to be fully digitised.

The European Commission insisted EES has operated “largely without issues” since its launch, with no “significant queues” apart from in limited cases.

But red lights are flashing already, with passengers telling The i Paper that they have been stuck in long EES delays at passport control.

Meanwhile, Europe’s airport trade body Airports Council International (ACI) Europe is warning of a risk of “serious safety hazards” from hiking the threshold of passengers checked from this month to 35 per cent.

ACI Europe said processing times had already increased by up to 70 per cent, with three-hour queues reported before this month’s hike.

EasyJet has previously warned that the enhanced checks could see passengers from the UK forced to stay on planes if European airports are full to capacity, with tourism bosses advising travellers to brace for delays.

A spokesperson for trade body ABTA told The i Paper: “Wherever you are travelling, with the ongoing rollout of EES, travellers should be prepared for the possibility of longer queues at passport control arrival and departure.

“We’re also encouraging border authorities across the EU to plan for busy times and use the contingency measures available to them, which can help avoid lengthy queues and waiting times.”

Here are some of the airports where passengers have been worst-hit by EES congestion so far.

Lisbon

At the end of 2025, the Portuguese Government suspended EES checks at Lisbon’s Humberto Delgado Airport for three months after weeks of chaos.

Minha mãe, com quase 70 anos, está há 6 horas na fila do controle de passaporte do Aeroporto de Lisboa. Sem comida, sem água, sem banheiro, junto com centenas de outros, incluindo idosos e crianças.Escárnio completo em um aeroporto que se propõe a ser um hub para a AL na UE. pic.twitter.com/IXmf2ywEU4

Soldiers were deployed to man border checkpoints after queues of up to seven hours at arrivals in one of Europe’s busiest airports.

Over Christmas, 80 police officers had been drafted in to help deal with lengthy waits at the Portuguese capital since EES launched last October.

Portugal’s government said the EES suspension came after a “worsening of constraints” for passengers arriving from outside the Schengen Area.

But the European Commission claimed the decision was not related to any issues with “the functioning of EES” and that Portugal had indicated the suspension was necessary to “accommodate restructuring work within the airport’s border area”.

Brussels

A spokesperson for Brussels Airport said EES has led to queues of up to three hours and said the delays have increased the need for “sufficient” staffing at border controls.

“Peak waiting times at arrival (entry of Belgium) can go up to three hours, and we also saw an increase in waiting times at departures,” the spokesperson said.

“For us as an airport, it is crucial that the Federal Police has the necessary staff to ensure acceptable waiting times for our passengers.”

They also called for the Government to allow the use of e-gates for third-country citizens, Americans, British, Canadians, and others on departure as well as arrival.

Currently, only Europeans nationals can use the airport e-gates.

Málaga 

Spain’s Interior Ministry says that since October’s launch, EES has been tested at ports, airports, and land borders “without any queues or significant incidents” so far.

But travellers from the UK told The i Paper of EES queues of almost two hours at Málaga Airport, with kiosks for facial and fingerprint scans not working.

Holidaymakers who travelled to the Spanish airport over Christmas and November raised concerns for passenger safety during the peak 2026 holiday periods once the new checks are fully in force for all non-EU travellers.

John Calladine, 51, from Leeds, experienced “horrific” queues on 22 November, with passengers, many of them elderly, stuck in long lines for at least an hour.

He fears medical emergencies could be “very possible” during peak travel periods once EES is fully operational, adding that the full rollout will be “a disaster”.

Lanzarote

British nationals arriving in Lanzarote have also reported being stuck in two-hour queues from the new checks, which started at César Manrique airport on 12 November.

According to reports in Spanish media, at the airport’s terminal one, 26 manual checkpoints, 72 automated devices, and 48 Automatic Border Control booths are now in place to handle arrivals.

But before EES launched, the president of the Chamber of Commerce of Lanzarote and La Graciosa, José Valle, raised concerns that the new checks could lead to “serious collapses” at the airport.

Prior to EES, there had already been criticism of long queues at passport control for non-EU citizens.

In October, Valle warned that arrival control is carried out in a very small space and long queues occur at specific times, “such as the arrival of three or four flights from the UK”.

Around 1.6 million passengers from the UK come to Lanzarote each year, with one, who arrived this month, describing the delays as “absolute chaos”.

Posting on X, he said: “Waited two hours and we weren’t even halfway towards the biometrics area, never mind passport control.

“Fortunately, the handling agent spotted that we had two babies in our party and waived us through. No biometrics!”

Prague

There have also been reports of long EES queues at Prague Airport.

According to reports, a software glitch on 28 December froze all of the airport’s 36 biometric kiosks for processing third-country nationals.

Czech police had to revert to manual passport stamping at Václav Havel Airport Prague.

Never seen a line like this at Prague Airport. This is for passport control under the recently introduced #EES scheme. pic.twitter.com/PgZViJdzPC

But problems have also been reported in earlier weeks, with passengers taking to social media to voice their frustration.

One posted on X on 19 December: “The EES at Prague Airport is beyond ridiculous. Two hours to get out of the airport. It was carnage. No airport staff to help.”

Another wrote: “Never seen a line like this at Prague Airport. This is for passport control under the recently introduced EES scheme.”

Italy (Milan, Venice, Verona)

Fears over airport congestion at next month’s Winter Olympics in Milan have led Italy to consider suspending EES checks for athletes and officials.

According to reports in the Italian press, the airports where checks would be stopped are Milan Malpensa, Milan Linate, Venice, and Verona.

The current scene at @MilanBergamoBGY where @Ryanair passengers from @EDI_Airport have been queuing for over 2 hours at passport control under new entry/exit scheme. Only a third processed so far. Another Brexit benefit – hah! @BBCScotlandNews @STVNews @ScottishSun pic.twitter.com/ZNPnXhJsJZ

The i Paper understands the suspension has not been confirmed, but that it is one option being discussed to mitigate delays from the games, which take place from February 6 to 22 and are due to attract up to two million visitors.

The busiest airport, Malpensa, is expecting more than 150,000 fans and 15,500 Olympics participants and officials in the week before the opening ceremony, bringing a substantial increase in traffic from non-Schengen countries.

Olivier Jankovec, director general of ACI Europe, said: “There are legitimate concerns about the capacity of border-control processes to absorb this demand smoothly.

“With the threshold of required registrations in the EES now pushed to 35 per cent, both the airport operations and the passenger experience are at risk.”

Geneva

Travellers to Geneva airport, Europe’s busiest ski destination, have reported being stuck in four-hour lines.

In October, British holidaymakers told The i Paper they were stuck in Geneva airport for more than two hours after landing due to the new post-Brexit checks.

Paul Moston, 60, from north London, who queued for more than two hours with his family in October, described it as “a traveller’s worst nightmare”.

“More and more flights are arriving and the queue is the entire length of the terminal. It’s nuts,” he told The i Paper.

“They say it will speed up, but it’s going to be a long, slow process to get everybody on the system.

“If you’ve got to register and then go through passport control like this, it’s just going to be a nightmare.”

Germany (Cologne, Berlin)

Passengers travelling to Germany have also experienced problems, with British nationals among those experiencing long queues after arriving at Cologne Airport last week.

One disgruntled passenger, who was travelling for his stag-do last Friday, said: “Been in a queue for an hour and a half and not moving.

“Every other gate is empty but they’re not putting on extra people. They don’t care.”

Jamie Kay, who travelled to Berlin in December, posted on X that the EES system at the airport was a “total farce”.

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“Automatic kiosks not working, all registrations being conducted manually, with only two border police desks open. Been queuing for 40 mins and hardly moved. EU passport lane completely clear,” he wrote.

“In the end, they had to open up the EU lane to clear the bottleneck. Still stamping passports.

“Plenty of folks jumping the queue. Took two hours in the end to get through. Disgraceful.”

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