EES queues trigger complaints from British travellers in the EU
British travellers report long queues, technical failures and confusion while going through the EU’s new digital Entry/Exit System (EES) in the Schengen area. The system requires citizens of non-EU countries to register, have their photo taken and provide fingerprints when entering and leaving.
As The Guardian World reports, the EES became fully operational technically in April after being launched last autumn. Amid reports of delays of up to three hours and missed connections, Brussels rejected calls from airports and airlines to suspend the system’s rollout during the summer peak. At the same time, border guards were allowed to relax requirements if queues became unmanageable; this exception expires next month.
Errors in counting days of stay
One purpose of the EES is to monitor compliance with the rule under which citizens of non-EU countries may stay in the bloc for no more than 90 days within any 180-day period. Retiree and former university professor Martin Farrall said that after returning to the United Kingdom, the system did not record his exit from the Schengen area.
According to him, on 7 August the EES website showed that he had no days left for travel, although the data was later updated to 34 days. At the same time, the system showed 90 available days for his wife, who had the same travel history. Farrall said that on 13 July he contacted the French General Directorate for Foreign Nationals, but received no response.
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Queues, repeat registration and accessibility
Traveller Nadia from Greater Manchester described a very long queue and a lack of information at Frankfurt Airport in July. According to her, because of the large crowd, an employee checked her passport but did not take her fingerprints. She also said that she had to provide biometric data again in different countries.
Student Evie, who studies in Munich on a long-term visa, said she was repeatedly directed to the EES queue because of her British passport. She had to explain her visa status, after which she was usually allowed into another queue. She believes airports need clearer signage regarding exemptions.
Other passengers complained about malfunctioning terminals, difficulties scanning fingerprints and a lack of assistance near the devices. In particular, 75-year-old Kevin said that some machines at Lanzarote Airport were not working, while people who could not complete registration joined the queue for manual processing. A couple travelling through Prague, Milan and Vienna also reported repeated registration attempts and problems using the equipment for a passenger with a visual impairment.
