Ryanair Warns of Longer Airport Queues at Lanzarote Airport as EU Entry/Exit System Continues to Cause Delays

Ryanair has warned UK holidaymakers to expect longer passport queues and airport delays this summer, blaming ongoing problems with the European Union’s Entry/Exit System (EES).

The airline says the biometric border control system, introduced for non-EU travellers, continues to create disruption months after its launch, with schools breaking up for the summer and passenger numbers reaching their seasonal peak.

Ryanair has identified several airports where passengers are reportedly experiencing significant delays at passport control, including Lanzarote Airport, Tenerife South, Madrid, Alicante, Málaga, Lisbon, Milan Bergamo, Milan Malpensa, Verona, Paris Beauvais, Berlin, Cologne, Frankfurt Hahn, Kraków and Budapest.

According to the airline, many airports are still without fully operational self-service kiosks, while staffing levels and border infrastructure remain insufficient to cope with peak passenger numbers. Ryanair says this has resulted in longer queues and slower processing times for travellers entering and leaving the Schengen Area.

Passengers travelling to or from non-Schengen destinations, or transiting through affected airports, are being advised to allow extra time for their journeys. Under the EES, travellers may be required to undergo passport scanning, fingerprint registration and facial image verification at border control.

Ryanair is backing calls from several EU member states to extend the current transitional arrangements for the Entry/Exit System into early 2027, arguing that airports and border authorities need more time to improve infrastructure, repair equipment and recruit additional staff before the system is fully enforced.

Neal McMahon, Ryanair’s Chief Operations Officer, said passengers should be looking forward to their holidays rather than spending hours waiting in passport queues.

He said the airline believes the current system is not functioning effectively and warned that travellers should not become “the testing ground for unfinished border infrastructure.”