European airline and airport associations – Airlines for Europe (A4E), ACI Europe and IATA – have written to European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen asking for an emergency waiver that would allow member states to pause the new digital Entry/Exit System (EES) when passenger volumes exceed border-control capacity. The open letter follows weeks of reports of queues of up to five hours at some external-Schengen airports since the system became fully operational in April. At a time when entry requirements are evolving so rapidly, many travellers are turning to VisaHQ for up-to-date guidance on visas, transit rules and the new EES procedures. The company’s Czech portal offers step-by-step tools that let passengers confirm what documentation they need before arriving at Václav Havel Airport, reducing last-minute surprises and helping them plan around potential bottlenecks. For Czechia the issue is immediate: Václav Havel Airport Prague handled over 23 000 non-EU departing and arriving passengers daily last week and expects volumes to climb by 18 % during the upcoming two-holiday weekend. Border Police have already redeployed 40 officers from regional airports to Prague to cope with the biometric capture process required for first-time registrants. Airlines warn that if delays are not controlled corporate travellers will downgrade Prague as a hub for regional conferences, undoing recent efforts to attract high-yield traffic. Czech travel-management company CWT CZ says some pharmaceutical clients are instructing staff to avoid tight 60-minute Schengen connections at Prague and Vienna until further notice. The Ministry of the Interior told Expats.cz that it supports “targeted flexibility” but would prefer a uniform EU solution rather than unilateral suspensions that could push bottlenecks to neighbouring airports. The Commission is scheduled to meet industry representatives on 7 July; Prague Airport says it will present data showing that each two-minute increase in average border-processing time costs airlines operating out of the Czech hub an estimated €1 million per month in delays and missed connections. In the meantime the airport advises non-EU passengers – including Britons, Americans and Australians – to arrive at least three hours before departure and to pre-enrol fingerprint data at off-peak times if available. Fast-track lanes remain open for accredited diplomats and crew.
