- Emergency flexibility measures expired on 6 September 2026 with full biometric enforcement
- Every non-EU traveller must give fingerprints and facial scans on entry and exit
- Spain, France, Italy and Portugal face sharpest increases in wait times
- British passport holders subject to mandatory biometric checks; Irish passport holders exempt
- European Commission refused to extend the grace period despite industry lobbying
The EU’s Entry/Exit System emergency flexibility rules have expired, with border guards no longer able to turn off fingerprint and face scans when lines become too long. Non-EU travellers face much longer passport control wait times, full biometric enforcement, and potential travel bottlenecks at major European ports and airports from 6 September 2026. Border teams cannot switch off the digital system to clear massive crowds.
Every non-EU traveller must give fingerprints and a facial scan upon entry and exit from the Schengen zone. Previously, if a border area suffered exceptional crowding, officials could skip biometric collection to keep lines moving. This loophole officially closed on 6 September, with industry groups warning that heavy summer-style delays and long queues are returning to Schengen area hubs.
Travellers flying into heavy tourism hubs across Spain, France, Italy and Portugal face the sharpest increases in wait times. British passport holders are directly subjected to mandatory facial and fingerprint scans, while Irish passport holders are exempt from the EES but may occasionally be funnelled into slower non-EU queues. Despite intense lobbying from airlines and ABTA to extend the grace period, the European Commission has held firm that the system must fully deploy without further standard extensions.
