Brits travelling to Portugal and Italy see airport change amid queue chaos
British tourists travelling to two of Europe's most popular holiday hotspots have been issued a new update after 'shambolic' queues caused major disruption at two key airports, with reports of long delays and growing frustration among passengers.The disruption has been linked to the rollout of the EU's new Entry/Exit System (EES), which is already causing operational difficulties in several countries. Portugal and Italy are now expected to be among the next destinations to suspend or scale back controversial EU border checks, while Greece has already postponed the introduction of the new EES rules for UK holidaymakers until September in response to severe delays.Reports suggest that passengers have been left waiting for hours in airport queues due to the new system, with some travellers even missing their flights as a result of the busy queues and processing delays.The post Brexit rules require all non-EU travellers to use designated kiosks at airports and border crossings to provide biometric information, including facial images and fingerprints.According to the Greek Reporter, Portugal is reportedly allowing passengers through when queues become too long and is expected to follow Greece's approach ahead of the May half-term by temporarily reverting to traditional passport stamping.Faulty biometric systems and staffing shortages are believed to be behind the disruption, with similar issues also reported in France and Croatia, the Mirror reports.Seamus McCauley, from the travel firm Holiday Extras, told the Mail on Sunday: "Countries are not going to sit back and let Greece take their trade just because they won't face EES delays at airports. To do so would be politically toxic when jobs are on the line."The rollout has been an utter fiasco. British tourists are worth €3.5 billion a year to the Greek economy, and the country has rightly decided it will not jeopardise that simply because the EES is failing to function properly."It follows budget airline Ryanair's call for EES rollout to be suspended until September.Join the Daily Record WhatsApp community!Get the latest news sent straight to your messages by joining our WhatsApp community today.You'll receive daily updates on breaking news as well as the top headlines across Scotland.No one will be able to see who is signed up and no one can send messages except the Daily Record team.All you have to do is click here, select 'Join Community' and you're in!We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you don’t like our community, you can check out any time you like.To leave our community click on the name at the top of your screen and choose 'exit group'.If you’re curious, you can read our Privacy Notice.Calling the system 'half-baked,' Ryanair said in a statement this week: "Despite knowing for over three years that EES would become fully operational from 10 April 2026, France, Portugal, Poland, Italy, Spain, and Germany have failed to ensure that adequate staffing, system readiness, or kiosks are in place."As a result, passengers are suffering long passport control queues and, in some cases, missing their flights."The statement continued: "Ryanair calls on these EU Governments to suspend the rollout of the EU's passport control Entry/Exit System (EES) until September to ensure that passengers are not needlessly forced to suffer long passport control queue delays at European airports during the peak summer season."Ahead of the EES system's introduction on April 10, the Foreign Office warned that travellers should expect to be "prepared to wait longer than usual at the border" when entering the EU.
