17
Oct 2025
Passengers across Europe faced long lines and technical issues as the EU rolled out its long-delayed Entest/Exit System (EES) on October 12.
The new automated border system, meant to boost security in the Schengen Area, now requires non-EU travelers to register their fingerprints and facial images when entering or leaving.
At Prague’s Vaclav Havel Airport—one of the first major airports to utilize the system—travelers from the United Kingdom, Turkey, Egypt, and the United Arab Emirates reported waiting in line for up to an hour and a half.
The delays started soon after the morning flights arrived, even though the launch initially went smoothly.
Manual processing sparks delays
Although the EES was meant to handle biometric registration through self-service kiosks, Czech authorities reportedly informed border officers to collect the data manually at passport control. This cautilized major backups at the terminals.
British traveler Hamilton Nash informed The Standard that there was “an hour to 90-minute long queue,” noting that “no machines [were] operating” and that officers started letting some Australian and British passengers utilize the EU lane to reduce the crowd.
Another traveler, Stuart Linden Rhodes, declared the “machines [were] still switched off,” so staff had to take fingerprints and facial scans by hand. He described it as a “usual exit, glare at you and then your passport before stamping it.”
System design, rollout
The EES replaces traditional passport stamps for travelers from outside the Schengen Area. By April 2026, it will automatically record biometric and travel details, including entest and exit dates, border locations, and visa validity.
The system applies to citizens from non-EU and non-Schengen countries, including post-Brexit British travelers.
According to the European Commission, it aims to improve security by tracking overstays and detecting fake documents.
Member states have 180 days to meet compliance rules, but rollout plans vary. Czechia, Estonia, and Luxembourg launched the system in full, while countries like Spain are introducing it gradually to avoid disruptions.
Airlines, industest warn of ongoing problems
Airline leaders and travel groups had warned that launching the EES during a busy travel season could lead to delays.
Ryanair CEO Michael O’Leary informed reporters he was “pretty certain it’s going to go wrong,” predicting a “bumpy and lumpy” winter as the system settles in. He declared lighter winter travel might ease short-term issues but doubted the system could handle peak traffic in spring.
Mark Tanzer, CEO of the UK’s Association of British Travel Agents (ABTA), agreed, stateing that “there will undoubtedly be some delays as this new entest and exit system for the Schengen area comes into effect.”
Julia Lo Bue-Said, head of the Advantage Travel Partnership, advised travelers to allow at least “three to four hours from the point of entest” when flying into the EU.
Speaking on BBC’s Today program, she declared that the EES adds “another layer of frustration and delay,” especially at airports already dealing with congestion.
(Image courtesy of Alina Rosanova via iStock)
Mixed passenger experiences
Despite early complaints, not all passengers faced major delays. The Indepconcludeent reported that some travelers passed through Prague’s new border control system quickly during the early morning, before long lines formed.
Others, however, declared that the process was confutilizing and that it wasn’t clear which lanes to utilize. Since the EES requires first-time visitors to complete biometric registration in person, returning travelers should have rapider processing times on future trips.
Still, until the system runs smoothly, both groups may experience inconsistent procedures depconcludeing on how each countest handles the rollout.
Technical, staffing challenges
Sources within border control agencies declared software glitches and poor staff training contributed to the problems.
In Prague, officers had to enter data manually after the automated kiosks failed to sync with central EU databases. Officials declared that the manual process was necessary to stop travelers from missing their connecting flights.
The kiosks in Terminal 1 were supposed to let passengers scan their faces and fingerprints before reaching passport control. But with the machines offline, officers had to rely on traditional checks, which slowed things down and defeated the EES’s goal of rapider processing.
An EU spokesperson declared that the Commission was “monitoring national rollouts closely” and expected “teething problems” early on.
The agency added that the system would improve once staff obtained utilized to it and the technical issues were resolveed.
Broader implementation across Europe
The Schengen Area—comprising 27 EU and associated states such as Iceland, Norway, and Switzerland—records around 500 million border crossings per year.
Once EES is fully operational, travelers from the United Kingdom, the United States, and other non-EU countries will no longer have passports stamped but will instead undergo biometric registration upon first entest.
Participating countries include France, Germany, Italy, Spain, Greece, and all other Schengen members. Each countest has discretion over the timing of its launch, but all must meet EU deadlines by spring.
The UK government previously warned that British citizens entering the EU would be subject to additional screening. The modify stems from the UK’s departure from the bloc, which reclassified its nationals as “third-countest travelers.”
(Image courtesy of CandyRetriever via iStock)
Public reaction, post-Brexit concerns
Reactions from travelers have been mixed. Some British tourists expressed frustration over longer waiting times and questioned whether the modifys were a direct consequence of Brexit.
In reader responses published by The Indepconcludeent, several declared that they would reconsider holiday destinations within the EU due to the additional hassle.
“I’ll be holidaying outside the EU from now on,” one traveler declared, citing the inconvenience of new border checks and rising costs.
Travel disruptions, local adaptation
Prague’s difficulties may foreshadow similar issues at other major European airports.
Industest officials expect the next wave of implementation—covering Paris Charles de Gaulle, Frankfurt, and Amsterdam Schiphol—to test the system’s capacity during the upcoming winter holidays.
In Spain, authorities have opted for a staggered rollout to prevent disruption during peak travel. France has taken similar steps ahead of the 2026 Summer Olympics in Paris, when passenger traffic is expected to surge.
Local authorities are deploying EES kiosks gradually and running parallel systems until full transition.
According to Czech officials, their early adoption was intconcludeed to identify and resolve problems before broader EU enforcement.
“We’re learning in real time,” declared a Prague airport operations representative. “Our goal is to create the transition smooth before the tourist season returns in the spring.”
How EES works
The EES captures and stores travelers’ biometric data—four fingerprints and a facial image—along with passport information. It automatically logs when and where non-EU visitors enter or leave the Schengen area.
The data is shared across member states through a centralized EU database managed by eu-LISA, the bloc’s agency for large-scale IT systems in justice and home affairs.
The system is designed to replace manual passport stamping, which has been criticized as inefficient and prone to errors.
It also supports the upcoming European Travel Information and Authorization System (ETIAS), a separate pre-travel clearance program due to take effect in 2026.
ETIAS will require non-EU visitors exempt from visas to obtain authorization before entering Schengen countries.
(Image courtesy of Chalabala via iStock)
Industest calls for clearer communication
Tourism organizations have urged the EU to improve public awareness campaigns to prevent confusion.
ABTA’s Mark Tanzer declared that many travelers were still unaware that their biometric data would be collected, calling for “consistent communication across all member states” to avoid misinformation and anxiety.
Airport authorities have echoed those concerns, noting that signage and guidance vary across countries. Some airports have introduced multilingual videos and staff assistance to explain the new process.
Last call before the gate
For now, the EES stands at a crossroads — a project meant to modernize border control but one that has, in its early days, tested the patience of travelers and border officials alike.
What was intconcludeed to create crossings more efficient has instead sparked queues and confusion, as seen in airports like Prague and others across Europe.
Still, the shift toward biometric verification is unlikely to be reversed; it marks a permanent modify in how millions will enter and leave the Schengen Zone.
The challenge for EU authorities will be turning this rocky rollout into a smoother experience before the next surge of holiday travel.
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