France’s Interior Ministry has moved to reassure travellers and business stakeholders that the EU’s new Entry/Exit System (EES) – which captures fingerprints and facial images of non-EU visitors – is operating without the chaos feared by airports and cross-Channel operators. Speaking to The Local on 20 July 2026, officials revealed that more than 110 million individual crossings have already been processed since the phased roll-out began on 12 October 2025, and that over 44 000 people have been refused entry, largely for visa overstays or security concerns. The Ministry stressed that French border posts have avoided “any major congestion”, thanks in part to the hiring of 350 extra staff and a “pragmatic” use of the legal flexibilities built into the EU regulations. By staggering the activation of self-service kiosks and prioritising peak-season flows, France says it has kept queues at Paris-CDG, Nice and other major gateways within acceptable limits. Business-travel groups had warned that the more detailed biometric capture could snarl airport throughput and undermine Paris’s competitiveness as a meetings hub. Corporate travel managers will welcome the Ministry’s commitment to maintain “border fluidity” over the busy August holiday period, especially at juxtaposed UK-France controls in Dover, Eurotunnel and Eurostar terminals, where full EES processing will now be deferred until September. Practically, companies should brief non-EU assignees and visitors that a first EES registration still takes longer than the old passport-stamp procedure, and that proof of French residency exempts holders from repeat biometric capture. Employers moving staff between EU sites should also note that EES automatically counts Schengen-area days, increasing the risk of accidental 90/180-day breaches. Long-term, the Interior Ministry argues that accurate entry/exit records strengthen security and will dovetail with the ETIAS travel-authorisation scheme due in 2027. Multinationals may therefore face more compliance checks on posted workers whose passports show inconsistent travel histories once both systems are fully operational.
Source: The Local France
