Expect four-hour queues with new EU border rules

UK travellers visiting countries such as Spain, Portugal and Italy are being urged to prepare for four-hour queues as a new EU border system came into force on Sunday.

- NEIL LANCEFIELD

The Entry Exit System (EES) involves people from third-party countries such as the UK having their fingerprints registered and photograph taken to enter the Schengen area, which consists of 29 European countries, mainly in the EU. For most UK travellers the EES process will be done at foreign airports.

Julia Lo Bue-Said, chief executive of Advantage Travel Partnership, a network of independent travel agents, said: “For major airports in southern Europe, we recommend that travellers now allocate four hours for navigating the new system in these initial stages.”