New EU border checks make arrivals complicated

As Europe rolls out its new biometric Entry-Exit System (EES) for non-EU travellers, airports and travel operators are warning that border controls are already creating significant arrival delays, with knock-on effects across the wider travel experience.

Passengers entering the Schengen Area from non-EU countries are now required to register biometric data, including fingerprints and facial images, on their first entry.

Industry groups representing airports have warned that the new system has increased passenger processing times at border control by up to four or five times, with reports of waits lasting several hours at peak times.

While much of the focus has been on passport control, the disruption does not end there, says Ričardas Šukys, CEO of Woop Drive, a platform that introduced a fully-digital car-rental platform at the airports.

According to him, delayed arrivals often cascade into congestion at car rental desks, transport pick-ups, and hotel check-ins, particularly at high-traffic leisure destinations during holiday periods.

The latest data by the International Air Transport Association shows that global passenger numbers are expected to surpass five billion this year. Pressure is growing on parts of the arrival process that still rely on manual checks, queues, and in-person verification.

In response, some operators are accelerating the shift toward fully digital arrival services. Woop Drive is one of the companies who have just launched a digital car rental platform with desk-free, app-based rentals across several popular destinations for non-EU travellers, including Greece, Spain, Montenegro, the United Arab Emirates, and Seychelles.

They believe digitalisation is the solution to prolonged processes. Rather than collecting vehicles at traditional rental counters, such platforms allow travellers to complete verification and access their cars via a mobile app, avoiding queues and in-person paperwork, an issue that is only going to become bigger for non-EU travellers.

A recent study by J.D. Power also revealed that skipping the counter alone results in 36% faster pick-up and increases customer satisfaction by up to 8%.

“Border control is becoming more complex for non-EU travellers, and that pressure doesn’t stop once passengers clear passport checks,” said Šukys. “As arrival times become less predictable, services that still depend on manual handovers are increasingly exposed to delays. We wanted to change it immediately.”

Airports and travel associations have warned that the situation could worsen over Easter and the summer peak, particularly when multiple flights arrive in short succession.

Travellers from non-EU countries should expect longer arrival times in Europe throughout 2026, especially during busy holiday periods. Some are now adapting their ground-transport and mobility offerings to reduce friction once passengers exit border control.

“Besides hours at check-ups in the airports, renting a car right after you land in your destination country usually means added stress, time constraints, and hurry. Nobody wants to spend their first vacation hours at the rental desk when you’ve already booked yours online. But that’s what happens. We knew this process could be simplified and become as easy as ordering food through an app. Every non-manual process will have to adapt to serve the needs of non-EU tourists now,” concluded Šukys.

The rollout of EES marks one of the biggest changes to European border management in decades. For the travel industry, it is also accelerating a broader reassessment of how arrivals are handled, and which parts of the journey can no longer rely on manual, counter-based processes, Šukys added.