New EU Entry/Exit System Triggers Two-Hour Queues at Stuttgart Airport

Travellers using Stuttgart Airport this week got an unexpected stress test of Europe’s new Entry/Exit System (EES). The fully-digital border control platform— operational since 10 April 2026 at all Schengen external borders—records every non-EU traveller’s passport data, facial image and fingerprints and automatically calculates their permitted length of stay. While designed to increase security and eventually speed up controls, the biometric enrolment required on a passenger’s very first trip is proving time-consuming during the busy summer season. Federal Police officers at Stuttgart told local media that the first‐time capture of four fingerprints and a live facial photo is adding up to 90 seconds per passenger. That may sound trivial, but at peak hours with wide-body arrivals it quickly snowballs into tail-backs. The German Airports Association (ADV) confirmed that at several German gateways international passengers have already waited “up to two hours” before reaching a kiosk. Self-service e-gates and extra staffing help, yet airports say the underlying process remains labour-intensive. Airlines are worried about misconnections. Low-cost carrier Ryanair has warned holiday-makers of congestion not only in Germany but at leisure hubs such as Palma de Mallorca and Milan–Bergamo, where ground infrastructure is less adaptable. ADV chief Ralph Beisel has urged the Interior Ministry to allow temporary suspensions of biometric capture when lines become “unreasonably long,” and to fast-track a mobile pre-registration app that would let travellers upload their data before arrival. For business-travel managers the advice is clear: build additional buffer time into itineraries, especially for first-time non-EU travellers transiting through German hubs. Corporates may also want to stagger flight arrivals for group travel or book fast-track services where offered. With ETIAS—the separate travel authorisation for visa-exempt visitors—due to launch later this year, the learning curve for border digitisation has only just begun. In the medium term, however, experts still expect EES to cut down overstays and identity fraud, benefitting compliant travellers and German employers alike. The challenge will be balancing security gains with the customer-experience standards global corporations demand.