Portugal and Italy do not plan to exempt British travellers from Europe’s new fingerprinting and facial scanning checks, the European Commission has confirmed.
The decision means the two countries are not following Greece, which has effectively suspended biometric checks at its borders for British citizens to avoid major disruption during the summer travel period.
The rollout of the European Union’s Entry Exit System, known as EES, has already caused long queues at some airports and raised concerns that delays could worsen as holiday travel peaks. The system requires most short-term visitors from outside the EU and European Economic Area to register biometric data each time they enter or leave the Schengen free travel zone.
The Commission said it was in contact with Greece to clarify the situation and remind it of the existing rules. Those rules allow checks to be suspended for short periods at specific border crossings in exceptional circumstances, but not for blanket exemptions for nationals of specific third countries for an extended period.
It also said it was in contact with Portugal and Italy, as with all member states, on the implementation of EES. The Portuguese and Italian authorities confirmed that they do not intend to exempt any nationality, the Commission said.
The EES was first introduced in October last year and was meant to become fully operational on 10 April. Although the European Commission says the system has mainly been working well, there have been repeated reports of passengers, many of them from the UK, facing long delays at border controls.
In some cases, travellers have missed flights. Last month, more than 100 people missed an EasyJet flight to Manchester from Milan s Linate airport after they were stuck in queues that the airline described as unacceptable.
Other passengers due to travel with Ryanair from Milan Bergamo airport to Manchester also missed their flight because of passport control problems, the airline confirmed.
The issues have already led to biometric checks on British citizens being abandoned in practice at Greek border controls, even though Athens said it had successfully started the full operation of the Entry Exit System.
Under the EU system, most short term visitors from outside the bloc must provide biometric data every time they cross into or out of the Schengen area. That includes fingerprinting and facial scans, which are intended to make border checks more secure and consistent across the bloc.
The timing has added pressure on airlines and holidaymakers as the busy summer season approaches. The travel industry is also facing wider strain from rising jet fuel costs and concern over fuel supplies.
Airlines have cut 13,000 flights globally for May, equal to about 1% of flights for that month. In the UK, travellers have been urged not to cancel trips because there is no fuel shortage and contingency plans are in place.
The European Commission says the EES remains an EU-wide system and that temporary suspensions can only be used in limited circumstances. For British travellers heading to Portugal or Italy, that means the biometric checks are set to stay.