EU agency eu-LISA published its inaugural quarterly report on the Entry/Exit System (EES) on 13 July, revealing that Italian border points processed 5.2 million biometric registrations between January and March 2026 – second only to Spain among Schengen members. The report highlights Rome-Fiumicino, Milan-Malpensa and Venice-Marco Polo as early adopters, with average first-time enrolment taking 77 seconds, compared with the Schengen average of 92 seconds. Land borders with Switzerland and Slovenia, by contrast, reported slower throughput due to limited kiosk deployment. Italian authorities credited a December-2025 training programme and the integration of national APIS data for the smoother rollout. However, eu-LISA warns that Q1 figures reflect off-season volumes and that processing times could spike during July-August, echoing concerns raised this week by the U.K. Transport Secretary. Businesses relocating staff to Italy should factor in initial biometric capture on first re-entry after 10 April 2026, when the system became fully operational. Frequent-traveller lanes planned at Milan-Linate and Turin-Caselle are expected to shorten repeat checks by 40 %, but will not be active until late-September.
Source: eu-LISA
