Nine Schengen Countries Retain Flexibility to Pause EES Biometrics at Some Borders

Nine Schengen countries are continuing to pause fingerprint and facial-image collection at selected border crossings after temporary flexibility for the European Union’s Entry/Exit System expired on September 6. France, Germany, Italy, Belgium, the Netherlands, Greece, Malta, Portugal and Switzerland have sought more time to resolve capacity or technical problems.

The pauses are not countrywide. Biometric registration is operating at the Eurostar terminal in Brussels and the port of Antwerp, as well as at major airports including Frankfurt and Amsterdam Schiphol. Some smaller airports and French controls at the Port of Dover have not implemented the full biometric process.

The Entry/Exit System, or EES, records travel-document information, fingerprints, a facial image and entry or exit data for most non-EU citizens making short visits to the Schengen area. It replaced manual passport stamping and is designed to identify overstays, fraudulent documents and people who do not meet entry requirements.

EES began a phased launch in October 2025 and became operational across external Schengen border crossings in April. Member states could temporarily suspend biometric registration when technical failures or excessive waiting times threatened border operations. That formal flexibility has ended, but Brussels officials have indicated that the nine countries will not face enforcement while targeted suspensions continue.

The transition has been marked by technical failures and long passenger queues. The expiry of the temporary exception also followed a rule change that removed border guards’ broad authority to pause biometric checks during heavy traffic.

EU officials say approximately 12 airports out of about 1,500 external border crossing points still have implementation problems. One small regional airport was expected to handle as many as 3,000 arriving passengers in an hour during peak periods with only four biometric-capture booths available.

The system has recorded about 200 million registrations, according to EU figures, and has stopped approximately 70,000 people from entering the Schengen area. Those cases included travelers without required visas, people who exceeded permitted stays and individuals using forged or multiple identity documents.

The EU’s Travel to Europe application lets travelers preregister a facial image and passport information before reaching the border. It is currently operational for Sweden and Portugal, where travelers can submit those details before arriving at a crossing.

Sources: The Guardian, European Commission

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By the ID Tech Editorial Team