Schengen border delays
Europe’s new biometric Entry/Exit System is creating slower first‑time crossings at Schengen external borders. (The EES began recording non‑EU short‑stay travelers on April 10 across 29 countries and captures biometric and crossing records that can be valid for up to three years.) ( ) Border agencies and carriers say the initial registration is the current chokepoint — passengers’ first EES use can add minutes at arrival and some groups are even asking for partial suspension through the summer while the system stabilises. ( )
Europe’s new Entry/Exit System is slowing first-time crossings at Schengen borders, with some travelers facing immigration lines of up to three hours. (euronews.com) The European Commission said the Entry/Exit System became fully operational on April 10, 2026, after a phased rollout that began on October 12, 2025. It now records entries, exits, and refusals of entry for non-European Union nationals making short stays in 29 European countries. (home-affairs.ec.europa.eu) At the border, the system replaces passport stamps with a digital file that includes a facial image, fingerprints, and travel-document data. The European Commission says those records are used to track the 90-days-in-180 rule for short stays. (home-affairs.ec.europa.eu) The biggest delays are hitting travelers on their first post-launch trip, because that first crossing requires biometric enrollment before the record can be reused. Euronews reported missed flights, stranded passengers, and weekend bottlenecks at airport border control after the April 10 switchover. (euronews.com) Airlines for Europe and Airports Council International Europe asked the European Commission on April 14 to allow “full or partial suspension” of the system through the end of summer where needed. Their complaint focused on the time required for first-time registration, not on later crossings after a traveler’s record is already in the database. (euronews.com) The system applies to non-European Union travelers visiting for short stays, including visa-free visitors such as many U.S. and U.K. passport holders. France’s foreign ministry said travelers do not need to complete any pre-trip application for Entry/Exit System registration before travel. (diplomatie.gouv.fr) The Entry/Exit System and the European Travel Information and Authorisation System are not the same program. France’s foreign ministry said the travel authorization system is expected in the last quarter of 2026, while the Entry/Exit System is the border database now in use. (diplomatie.gouv.fr) Brussels says the new database is meant to tighten external-border checks and replace manual stamping with a shared digital record across the Schengen area. For now, the first test for many travelers is simpler: getting through the first biometric check without missing a train or flight. (home-affairs.ec.europa.eu, euronews.com))
