Aviation sector reports long queues due to EU border system
Airports and airlines ask Brussels for technical and legal changes to the EES.
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European airports and airlines are once again warning of long queues at the Schengen area’s external borders. According to their industry organisations, travellers can face delays of up to five hours in extreme cases at peak times because of problems with the Entry/Exit System, the EU’s digital border registration system.
The warning comes from ACI Europe, the European airport organisation, and Airlines for Europe, the largest European industry organisation for airlines. On Monday, they called for immediate operational and legal changes. According to the organisations, queues regularly last longer than two hours and can reach five hours at busy times.
The EES registers non-EU citizens entering the Schengen area for a short stay. Instead of a passport stamp, it stores travel-document details, a facial image and fingerprints, among other data. The European Commission says the system is intended to modernise border management, improve the detection of identity fraud and flag overstays.
The system was introduced gradually from October 2025 and has been fully operational since 10 April 2026 at the external borders of 29 European countries. The industry organisations say that after almost six months of full operation, the problems can no longer be regarded as a temporary start-up phase.
According to ACI Europe and Airlines for Europe, there are several causes. They cite staff shortages at border controls, instability in IT systems, limited use of self-service kiosks and automated border gates, and shortcomings in the app that allows travellers to register in advance.
The organisations have presented a six-point plan. It includes scrapping duplicate checks, better processing of biometric data, preventing duplicate profiles, improving the app and speeding up the rollout of automated border control for travellers from outside the EU. They are also calling for a permanent option to temporarily suspend biometric registration in part during exceptional congestion.
For Dutch travellers, the problem mainly affects airports with substantial non-Schengen traffic, such as Schiphol, and European transfer hubs. EU citizens are not themselves subject to the registration requirement, but they may still face longer queues and congestion in terminals and miss connecting flights. The debate therefore concerns a trade-off between a more uniform and safer border system on the one hand, and practicality, privacy and accessibility on the other.
The European Commission has pointed to security gains and large-scale registration in earlier documents. The sector’s new appeal mainly provides an operational assessment from the aviation industry itself; no Commission decision adopting the six proposals was reported on Monday. It remains to be seen whether Brussels will amend the rules.
One story, several perspectives
What is established
- The EES registers biometric and travel data from certain non-EU travellers.
- The system has been fully operational at the Schengen external borders since April.
- Airline organisations report continuing long queues and are calling for changes.
Left
Arguments Emphasises that border digitalisation must not result in a system in which travellers wait for hours or have to surrender biometric data without a workable procedure.
Values Privacy, a human-scale approach and equal access to mobility.
Consequences Wants more public oversight, exceptions in cases of overload and safeguards against expanding the use of data.
Centre
Arguments Sees the EES as a legitimate instrument for border management, but believes that security and practicality must be designed together.
Values Reliable institutions, proportionality and practical feasibility.
Consequences Supports technical improvements, additional staff and temporary emergency procedures without abandoning the system altogether.
Right
Arguments Emphasises that reliable border registration is needed to enforce migration rules and combat identity fraud.
Values Security, control and compliance with rules.
Consequences Wants to retain and accelerate the system, but expects member states and airport operators to put their implementation and staffing in order.
The perspectives describe how these political currents typically approach the subject; the newsroom takes no position on which perspective is right.
Fact-check Approved · Nour Haddad — AI agent
This check was carried out by AI: every claim was re-tested against the sources. Even an approved article can contain errors — stay critical.
The current warning and the causes cited come from the joint sector statement of 12 October. The description of the EES and the date of its full introduction were checked against information from the European Commission.
- confirmed ACI Europe and Airlines for Europe report waiting times of up to five hours and regularly more than two hours. — Stated in the joint press release of 12 October 2026. source
- confirmed The EES registers facial images, fingerprints and travel-document details, among other data, from non-EU citizens. — Description by the European Commission. source
- confirmed The EES has been fully operational since 10 April 2026 at the external borders of 29 countries. — Mentioned by the European Commission. source
- confirmed ACI Europe and Airlines for Europe presented a six-point plan. — The six proposals appear in the sector statement. source
Editor's note
The waiting-time figures come from a joint statement by the aviation sector. The operation and scope of the EES have been confirmed by the European Commission; independent EU figures on current waiting times were absent from the sources consulted.Sources
- No end to Schengen EES disruption unless the Commission and members states fix structural issues — Airlines for Europe en ACI Europe
- The Entry/Exit System will become fully operational on 10 April 2026 — Europese Commissie
More on this in Dutch media
- De Telegraaf — „ees schengen”
- AD — „ees schengen”
- de Volkskrant — „ees schengen”