EU biometric checks for foreign travellers delayed again

The date for the introduction of the EU’s new entry-exit system has been pushed back again until November, allaying fears of long queues at the border during the October half-term holidays.

The launch of the new biometric checks for foreign travellers, including Britons, entering the EU, has been delayed from 6 October until at least 10 November, with many smaller airports yet to have facilities in place.

The European Commission has not confirmed a new date but some ports and airports have been briefed to expect a later start – with a “last resort” date of 17 November, according to a report in the Independent.

The move will again raise questions over the readiness of a system that has been long delayed from the planned 2021 start, with the French insisting the additional border controls should not be introduced before the Paris Olympics.

Under the entry-exit system (EES), non-EU citizens will have to register their biometric information – including fingerprints and facial scans – at the border, under the supervision of an EU officer, on their first visit.

There have been warnings of long queues at British points of entry – including the Port of Dover, and Eurostar’s St Pancras terminal – where the French and EU border is physically located in England, before passengers board ferries or trains.

European airports, whose late summer season could have run into the EES deadline, had urged a further postponement.

Eurostar has invested millions in revamping St Pancras with pre-check-in areas containing kiosks to register most of the biometric data, which will then have to be checked again by the French border police. The cross-Channel train operator said the process would add only a few seconds to border queues and not cause chaos, although passengers would have to ensure they arrived in time for the additional layer of biometric checks.

Getlink, the operator of Le Shuttle, which takes vehicles through the Channel tunnel, has spent €78m (£66m) providing new facilities to ensure a smooth introduction. It expects EES will mean an additional six to seven minutes to process a carful of passengers.

The Port of Dover, which has limited space to create additional facilities and whose travellers often include coaches, has been particularly concerned about the potential for long queues.

The European airports trade body, ACI Europe, had called on the European Commission to reconsider the October date, as it would mean additional work to prepare facilities and staff when the industry would still be at full stretch in the peak season.

It is, however, understood that EES would not be rigorously enforced for all travellers at first, with a soft introduction and discretion to wave people through to avoid border queues and disruption.

Once the EES biometric system is up and running, the EU will introduce a further border requirement, Etias, similar to the US Esta. It means, post-Brexit, British travellers will also need to register online for a €7 visa to cross the Channel or fly into the EU.