"The EU Entry/Exit System (EES) is implemented in EU countries (except for Cyprus and Ireland), as well as Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway and Switzerland. Introduced on October 12th after years of delay, the EES requires EU travellers entering Europe's Schengen open-borders zone to register personal data and provide biometric information at the first border crossing. Self-service kiosks are deployed at airports for that purpose, with information also checked by border guards. The data will be held in digital form in an EU-wide database."
"But issues with the IT infrastructure led to many delays in the launch of the system. After several postponements, it was decided to introduce the EES gradually over six months, with not all border crossing points going live at the same time, or not collecting full information, in a bid to address emerging issues at specific locations. Since the launch, however, major queues were reported at several airports."
"The progressive scalingup of the registration and capture of biometric data from third country nationals entering the Schengen area has resulted in border control processing times at airports increasing by up to 70 per cent, with waiting times of up to 3 hours at peak traffic periods. This is severely impacting the passenger experience, with airports in France, Germany, Greece, Iceland"
Airport Council International (ACI Europe) called for an urgent review of the EU Entry/Exit System (EES) and said additional rollout flexibility may be needed if problems persist beyond January. The EES, implemented across EU countries except Cyprus and Ireland and in Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway and Switzerland, requires travellers to register personal data and provide biometrics at the first Schengen border crossing using kiosks and border guard checks. Data will be stored in an EU-wide digital database to replace passport stamping and identify overstayers or security risks. IT issues delayed launch, prompting a six-month staggered roll-out. Since launch, airports have reported major queues, processing times increasing up to 70% and peak waits up to three hours.
Read at www.thelocal.com
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