The airport industry and major airlines across the continent have issued an urgent warning to the European Commission regarding the implementation of the new Entry/Exit System (EES). This electronic control technology, intended to speed up transit, threatens to cause waits of up to four hours during the peak season of July and August 2026. Since its launch last October, the electronic system that replaced the traditional passport stamping has shown significant flaws. Organizations ACI Europe (representing 600 airports in 55 nations) and Airlines for Europe report a critical combination of factors: a chronic lack of staff at control points and recurring technical failures that have not yet been resolved. This situation is already affecting non-EU citizens trying to enter or leave the Schengen area, but the real fear is the exponential increase in passenger flow during the summer period, when traffic usually doubles. Its main objectives are: Control of stay: Automatically detect those who exceed the short-stay limit (90 days in a 180-day period). Crime prevention: Identify cases of document fraud and identity theft through biometrics. However, experts argue that the current airport infrastructure is not prepared for the data processing load that the system requires in real time. In early January 2026, the authorities in Portugal were forced to suspend the EES system at Lisbon Airport for 90 days due to queues becoming unmanageable. Faced with this scenario, the aviation industry has formally requested Brussels to temporarily suspend the implementation of the electronic passport control; to return to the traditional control method during the summer vacation peak; and to postpone the full implementation of the system until the last quarter of 2026 (October), thus allowing software errors to be fixed and security staffing to be reinforced. There is a total disconnect between the perception of the European Union's institutions, which believe the system is working correctly, and the operational reality. The summer of 2026 could be remembered not for its landscapes, but for the endless lines at international terminals. The severity of the situation is not merely hypothetical.
