Americans Face 1-3 Hour Delays In European Destinations Due To New Fingerprinting Rules

You’ve booked the flights, dreamed of the tradition and are counting down the times till your European getaway. However a brand new, high-tech security system being rolled out at major airports is popping that dream arrival into lengthy strains and delays for People touchdown in some European locations. Whereas some People are flying by way of the brand new system in minutes, others are reporting confusion and lengthy wait occasions. It is going to all rely upon the place and whenever you land.

Right here at Travel Off Path, we’re all about supplying you with the true, on-the-ground intel it’s worthwhile to journey smarter. We have been monitoring a surge of stories from vacationers and official sources, and the story is evident: the complicated, country-by-country launch of Europe’s new biometric border guidelines is inflicting delays, with some People reporting waits of up to three hours simply to get by way of immigration. Under we are going to go over the airports with the longest delays and what you’ll be able to count on to your flight.

Right here’s what it’s worthwhile to know earlier than you fly.

First day of the brand new biometric screening for non EU nationals. The EU queue in Brussels airport nearly non existent as compared pic.twitter.com/vfN2zDOA1s

— Joe Lynam (@JoeBLynam) October 13, 2025

What Precisely Is Taking place on the Border?

That is all a part of the EU’s new Entry/Exit System (EES), the high-tech course of that’s changing conventional passport stamps. As an alternative of a border officer stamping your passport, non-EU vacationers now have to make use of a self-service kiosk to supply their biometric information: particularly, four fingerprints and a facial photograph.

Whereas the objective is to hurry issues up in the long term, the preliminary rollout has been a catastrophe in a number of key airports. An ideal storm of technical glitches, inadequate staffing to assist confused passengers, and an absence of clear directions is creating large bottlenecks.

Airports To Maintain An Eye On

Primarily based on a consensus of current traveler stories and official airport statements, these are the current hotspots for potential delays. Bear in mind there are numerous components that may have an effect on wait occasions at immigrations together with the time you land and staffing ranges.

• Brussels, Belgium (BRU): That is the epicenter to this point. The airport has publicly acknowledged “challenges” with the brand new system, and vacationers are constantly reporting immigration queues of as much as three hours, inflicting missed connections and immense frustration.
• Prague, Czech Republic (PRG) : Prague’s Airport debut of the EU’s new EES biometric system was marked by chaos, as non-functioning self-service kiosks pressured all non-EU vacationers to be processed manually, resulting in immigration queues of up to 90 minutes. Vacationers can now count on longer-than-usual waits and are being formally suggested to reach on the airport at the very least three hours earlier than their departure to be secure.
• Rome, Italy (FCO): Whereas the state of affairs in Rome is just not the meltdown seen in Brussels, vacationers ought to nonetheless be ready for a brand new and probably slower arrival course of. The EES system is now operational at Fiumicino Airport, and whereas widespread, multi-hour delays usually are not being constantly confirmed by official sources, a big variety of current on-the-ground traveler stories nonetheless level to longer-than-usual queues and confusion on the new kiosks. The underside line: your entry could possibly be easy, or it could possibly be gradual, so budgeting further time is the good transfer.

• Spain (MAD & BCN): The state of affairs at Spain’s busiest airports is a transparent signal of the adjustments to return, however the widespread chaos has not but arrived. Official bulletins and traveler stories verify that Spain is conducting a really gradual and cautious rollout of the EES. Which means that whereas you will notice the brand new biometric kiosks at Madrid and Barcelona, they’re being applied in a phased method. For now, widespread, constantly lengthy queues usually are not a significant subject, however vacationers needs to be conscious that the system is new and the state of affairs is growing.
• Paris, France (CDG): The rollout in Paris is inflicting some confusion. Charles de Gaulle airport is utilizing a “hybrid system,” the place some passengers are directed to the brand new EES kiosks whereas others nonetheless go to conventional passport cubicles. Whereas this isn’t but inflicting the sort of extreme, multi-hour delays seen elsewhere, a consensus of current traveler stories signifies that the complicated course of can create unpredictable strains. The takeaway for vacationers is that the state of affairs is fluid; whilst you may get fortunate with a fast entry, it is clever to be ready for a slower and extra disorganized course of than you are used to.

Maintain On, Is This The Similar as ETIAS?

This can be a important level of confusion, so let’s make it easy: No, that is utterly separate from the ETIAS.

What This Means For Your Journey This Fall & Winter

In case you are flying to Europe within the coming months, it’s worthwhile to be ready for a brand new and probably a lot slower arrival expertise.

1. Connecting Flights are Dangerous: In case your itinerary has a brief connection, you’re at excessive threat of lacking your subsequent flight. We strongly advise permitting at the very least three hours for any connection in a Schengen zone nation till these points are resolved.
2. Be Ready for Biometrics: Know that you can be required to supply your fingerprints and a photograph. Having your passport prepared and following the kiosk directions is the quickest method by way of.
3. That is The New Regular (For Now): This is not a one-day drawback. As extra international locations activate their techniques on this complicated, phased rollout, these delays are more likely to turn out to be extra frequent earlier than they get higher.

Navigating the world of journey guidelines could be a headache, however it would not should be. To remain on high of this and some other adjustments, the very best software is our 1 Minute Trip Check, which supplies you the real-time entry necessities for any vacation spot.