EU Entry/Exit System Delays: Travel Light for Faster Processing!

Travelers bound for the EU face the risk of missing their flights as the time required for bag drop-offs clashes with delays caused by a new security checkpoint system.

Our family of four was unable to catch our return easyJet flight from Málaga, despite arriving at the airport three hours before our flight as suggested. Unfortunately, the baggage drop only opened two hours prior to takeoff.

The process of checking our bags took 47 minutes due to long lines, leaving us only 53 minutes to go through security and make it to our gate.

Managing this with two young children was challenging, and ultimately, we, along with five other passengers, could not board in time.
MP, London

Your family became unintended victims of the EU’s new Entry/Exit System (EES), initiated last October, which mandates that non-EU travelers undergo biometric registration, including photographs and fingerprints, at the border.

Even if biometrics were submitted during the outward journey, travelers must stand in line again with others who have not yet registered upon their return.

This system, designed to curb overstays by visitors, has led to a 70% increase in the time taken for security processes, as per the Airports Council International.

Lisbon airport had to halt the system temporarily in December after wait times soared to seven hours. EasyJet confirmed to me that the timing of their baggage drop is at their discretion and that they have no intention of altering the current two-hour window.

They acknowledged that the queues were unusually long when you traveled and advised passengers to allocate more time. However, they did not acknowledge that such advice is futile if the timing for baggage drops remains rigid. They did, however, take pride in offering discounted “rescue fares” for those left stranded, which still cost you an extra £1,000 to return home.

When I questioned the International Air Transport Association (IATA) if it would recommend airlines to extend their bag drop times to manage the security chaos, they responded negatively.

Citing “Operational, regulatory, and commercial realities,” they stated that a uniform approach was impractical. They added that they had repeatedly cautioned that fully implementing the EES as it currently stands poses an operational hazard, especially before the summer peak travel season.

IATA has implored member states to consider partially or fully suspending the EES during peak times and to urgently increase staffing levels to manage the system more effectively and eliminate unnecessary checks.

To ensure you make your flight, your best strategy might be to pack everything into a carry-on bag and bypass checking luggage altogether.

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