Airports across the Schengen area are experiencing longer outbound queues as carriers and border-police units ramp up testing for the European Union’s Entry/Exit System (EES), due to become mandatory in October. A 4 July MarketScreener report highlighted hour-long lines at Frankfurt and Paris; Prague Airport confirms a similar pattern, with peak-morning passport-control waits stretching to 35–40 minutes this week—double the 2025 average. Under EES, every non-EU traveller will have four fingerprints and a facial scan recorded at first entry, data that replaces passport stamps but adds roughly 45 seconds to each transaction. Although the system is not yet live, many border posts—including Prague’s Terminal 2 outbound control—have switched to the new biometric readers so officers can be trained ahead of time. The Czech Police Foreigners’ Service advises passengers on flights to the UK, USA and the Middle East to arrive at least three hours before departure until further notice, and large employers are already feeling the pinch.
![EU’s new Entry/Exit System lengthens border queues; Prague Airport urges early arrival]()
For travellers hoping to sidestep last-minute border headaches, VisaHQ can help streamline the process: its dedicated Czech Republic page lets users confirm visa and biometric requirements in minutes and even arrange document pick-up, easing the administrative load for frequent flyers and corporate mobility teams alike.
Siemens Czech Republic reports that five engineering staff missed a morning flight to Riyadh on 3 July despite arriving 140 minutes pre-departure; the firm is now adding an overnight buffer for critical assignments. Prague Airport is accelerating mitigation measures: 20 additional e-Gate kiosks (see separate story) will be opened on 15 July, and ground-handling companies have been asked to shift document checks to off-site city-centre kiosks for group tours and MICE charters. Mobility specialists should update travel policies, instructing non-EU assignees to complete airline digital-verification steps (such as Lufthansa’s “FastID”) to cut manual document review at the gate. While disruption is likely to intensify through the summer peak, the airport stresses that once EES is fully operational processing times should stabilise. In the meantime, proactive timing and pre-enrolment in automated border systems remain the best defences against missed connections.
For travellers hoping to sidestep last-minute border headaches, VisaHQ can help streamline the process: its dedicated Czech Republic page lets users confirm visa and biometric requirements in minutes and even arrange document pick-up, easing the administrative load for frequent flyers and corporate mobility teams alike.
Siemens Czech Republic reports that five engineering staff missed a morning flight to Riyadh on 3 July despite arriving 140 minutes pre-departure; the firm is now adding an overnight buffer for critical assignments. Prague Airport is accelerating mitigation measures: 20 additional e-Gate kiosks (see separate story) will be opened on 15 July, and ground-handling companies have been asked to shift document checks to off-site city-centre kiosks for group tours and MICE charters. Mobility specialists should update travel policies, instructing non-EU assignees to complete airline digital-verification steps (such as Lufthansa’s “FastID”) to cut manual document review at the gate. While disruption is likely to intensify through the summer peak, the airport stresses that once EES is fully operational processing times should stabilise. In the meantime, proactive timing and pre-enrolment in automated border systems remain the best defences against missed connections.
