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Waiting times for British holidaymakers at passport control have tripled due to the EU’s new border system, an airport boss has said.
Travellers have been hit with severe delays across Europe due to the Entry Exit System (EES) this summer.
The system requires non-EU citizens entering the Schengen area to provide their fingerprints and a photograph upon arrival.
This information is then checked when they leave.
For most Brits, this process occurs at foreign airports, with the digital record kept for three years.
The International Air Transport Association (IATA), an airline industry body, recently warned border queues could reach six hours this summer.
Britons prepare for the long ‘airport shuffle’ as EU entry/exit row hots up
With the schools having finally broken up and families heading off on holiday, the row over the EU’s new entry/exit system is going to reach boiling point.
Passengers and airlines have been complaining of interminable delays at airports, with flights being missed, for weeks and that was before the great summer rush had begun.
Ryanair is among the carriers warning customers to expect protracted waits and to turn up earlier than usual.
Meanwhile, the EU refuses to respond, preferring to stand by the new technology. Possibly, it will take a scene of total pandemonium, perhaps several, before they see sense and call a halt until it can be made to work efficiently. Until then, prepare to shuffle along in lines. Chris Blackhurst
Ryanair has warned its passengers they face long waits at airports due to the new rules.
At Rome’s Fiumicino airport, is among those to integrate the EES with passport control barriers, as well as standalone kiosks.
However, the waiting times for UK citizens to get through passport control has risen from seven minutes to 20 minutes, according to the BBC.
This means queues take almost three times as long as normal.
Many border points are reportedly collecting the same initial scans multiple times.
The system has caused delays in airports, and at borders where there are French checkpoints on UK soil, like at the Port of Dover.
The Police Aux Frontieres have deployed more staff to UK-based checkpoints to manually register those leaving for France.
Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander brokered the agreement for the increased presence with her French counterpart Phillippe Tabarot, ahead of the summer holidays.
This extra presence will be in place while the French border force awaits the installation of new passport booths and tablets.
Ministers have announced they will provide £20 million of funding to increase the number of booths, on top of £10.5m they have already put towards preventing disruption.
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