Ryanair demands Spain, Portugal, Italy scrap new rules for UK tourists
Ryanair has called for new rules for UK tourists visiting Spain, Portugal and Italy to be scrapped. The European Union Exit and Entry System, or EES, is now being enforced at EU airports for Uk holidaymakers heading out of Birmingham.
BHX passengers risk long queues and chaos upon arrival to their holiday destinations. One popular hotspot, Greece, has lifted the restrictions for holidaymakers after seeing it cause carnage when it was introduced on April 10.
And now Ryanair, which flies from Birmingham, and is rivalled by Jet2, Easyjet, TUI and more, has demanded the continent act and ease the new biometric rules.
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The airline’s chief operations officer Neal McMahon said: “Governments across Europe are attempting to roll out a half-baked IT system in the middle of the busiest travel season of the year, and passengers are paying the price, being forced to endure hours long passport control queues and in some cases, missing flights.
He went on: “The solution is simple and already provided for under EU law (EU Reg. 2025/1534) – Govts should suspend EES until September when the peak summer travel season has subsided, just as Greece has done.
“This would allow passengers – many of whom are travelling with young families – a smoother airport experience for their summer holidays.”
The Labour Party government warns: “EES registration is replacing the current system of manually stamping passports when visitors arrive in the EU.
“EES may take each passenger extra time to complete so be prepared to wait longer than usual at the border.”
It is designed to improve border security within the EU and its neighbouring countries, and reduce illegal migration in the Schengen area.
It automates border control checks to help the EU stop visitors overstaying., the Foreign Office, or FCDO, goes on to advise on its website.