France Stands with Spain, Greece and Others as UK is Urged to Directly Collaborate with EU Leaders to Waive EES Border Controls Until the End of Summer Amid Major Travel Disruptions and Delays

Written By: Debomita Dutta

Debomita Dutta

As a debater, researcher and writer I have always been passionate about making complex global developments accessible, accurate and impactful. It has always been my aim to combine a strong analytic approach with incredible storytelling - and here at Travel and Tour World I get to do just that! Bridging research, public discourse and meaningful communication through informed and engaging narratives.

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July 24, 2026 19:04 GMT+5:30

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France stands with Spain, Greece, Spain, Portugal and Italy using emergency waivers to prevent severe bottlenecks. Amid major travel disruptions and delays, the UK is urged to directly collaborate with EU leaders to waive EES border controls until the end of summer to streamline peak travel. The rollout of the EU’s Entry/Exit System (EES), requiring fingerprints and facial scans across 29 Schengen countries, has doubled border processing times, according to Airports Council International (ACI) Europe.

With over 2.2 million UK holidaymakers traveling during peak summer weekends, extra minutes per passenger create multi-hour queues. To prevent total gridlock, France, Spain, and Greece are using Article 27 emergency rules to temporarily bypass biometric checks during heavy rushes. Meanwhile, UK politicians are urging direct talks with EU leaders to pause EES rules until summer ends.

This guide breaks down country-specific waivers, legal frameworks, and border infrastructure updates.

What Is the EU EES? Crucial Rules, Biometric Data & Processing Delays Explained

Established under EU Regulation (EU) 2017/2226, the EES automatically logs the entry, exit, and refusal data of third-country nationals traveling for short stays (up to 90 days within any 180-day period).

Key System Benchmarks & Data Insights

• Biometric Profile Collection: First-time travelers must register four digital fingerprints and a live facial image, stored alongside passport data in a central database for three years.
• Processing Time Multiplier: Airports Council International (ACI) Europe reports that initial biometric profiles increase border clearance times by 70% to 100% per passenger (rising from 45 seconds to over 90 seconds).
• Traveler Queue Impact: YouGov survey data indicates 75% of British travelers were aware of potential EES queues, with 36% of recent visitors reporting biometric queues and 27% experiencing total travel time increases.

At juxtaposed border checkpoints, such as the Port of Dover and Eurotunnel Folkestone, processing delays can trigger immediate vehicular tailbacks onto surrounding highway networks including the A20 and M20 corridors.

European Border Crisis Breakdown: How Member States Are Emergency-Bypassing EES Rules

Under Article 27 of Regulation (EU) 2017/2226, border authorities facing extraordinary operational pressures are legally permitted to partially or temporarily suspend biometric data collection for up to six hours, provided primary identity and security database lookups remain active.

France

• Juxtaposed Port Adjustments: French border police (Police Auxiliaires aux Frontières) at Dover and Folkestone selectively pause secondary fingerprint capture during peak traffic surges exceeding 1,000 vehicles per hour.
• Capital Infrastructure Expansion: The UK government announced £20 million in new funding for Dover to add passport check booths and cut queues, building on an initial £10.5 million split across Dover, Eurotunnel, and Eurostar.
• Corridor Freight Safeguards: Emergency flexibility protocols help maintain flow for the 1.5 million freight HGVs and 2+ million tourist cars crossing the Dover Strait annually.

Greece

• Targeted Airport Waivers: Greek border authorities at high-density hubs (Athens, Heraklion, Rhodes) execute short-term biometric waivers during arrival surges exceeding terminal design limits.
• Tourism Demographic Focus: British tourists account for over 4.5 million annual visits to Greece; temporary waivers prevent tarmac delays and severe terminal overcrowding.
• Regulatory Compliance: Following European Commission rulings prohibiting blanket national exemptions, Greece strictly ties its pauses to time-limited operational capacity breaches.

Spain

• Manual Override Protocols: Border checkpoints at Málaga, Palma de Mallorca, and Madrid-Barajas revert to manual passport checks during e-gate system connectivity freezes.
• Personnel Deployment: Over 1,200 additional border agents were deployed to primary tourist gateways to manage registration kiosk triage and speed up manual clearance.
• Airside Delay Control: Manual overrides maintain clearance rates above 800 passengers per hour per plaza, preventing downstream flight delay cascading.

Portugal & Italy

• Dynamic Surge Management: Both nations execute temporary EES collection pauses during arrival waves at Lisbon Humberto Delgado and Rome Fiumicino airports.
• Security Priority: When queues exceed 45 minutes, border teams bypass fingerprint scans while maintaining mandatory lookups against the Schengen Information System (SIS II).

High-Stakes Diplomacy: Inside the Political Push for an EU-Wide EES Waiver

Given the fragmented border rules across individual ports, Liberal Democrat Foreign Affairs spokesperson Calum Miller has publicly urged Prime Minister Andy Burnham to open direct diplomatic channels with European Union leaders.

Core Diplomatic Objectives

• Standardized Border Enforcement: Replacing piecemeal country-by-country waivers with a clear, uniform standard across all 29 Schengen states.
• Traveler & Carrier Certainty: Providing airline and ferry operators with stable processing windows to prevent flight cancellations and missed connections.
• Peak Season Relief: Securing an executive moratorium on biometric enrollment through the highest-volume summer travel months.

The Legal Blueprint: EU Border Frameworks & £20M+ UK Infrastructure Upgrades

The legal framework governing EES operations sets strict conditions for operational flexibility during peak travel periods:

European Commission Border Operational Standard:

“Pursuant to Article 27 of Regulation (EU) 2017/2226, where exceptional traffic volumes create disproportionate waiting times at border crossing points, member states may temporarily suspend systematic biometric data collection, provided basic identity verification against national and European databases remains fully functional.”

Key UK Port Investments

• £20 Million Outward Bound Project: Awarded to Kent County Council for Dover to expand passport check booths and increase vehicle throughput, aiming to reduce traffic queuing systems like Operation Brock by up to 80%.
• Drive-Through Registration Kiosks: Purpose-built covered booths at Eurotunnel Folkestone allow vehicle occupants to complete passport checks without leaving their cars.
• Dedicated Terminal Plazas: Western Docks expansion at Dover provides dedicated processing zones to segregate freight from passenger traffic during peak weekends.

In conclusion, France stands with Spain, Greece and others in deploying localized emergency waivers to keep border controls moving smoothly until the end of summer. These member states recognize that rigid biometric enforcement during peak seasonal surges triggers major travel disruptions and delays, threatening regional tourism and supply chains. As queue times rise, the UK is urged to directly collaborate with EU leaders to negotiate a unified, continent-wide suspension of EES processing. By coordinating high-level diplomatic protocols, both sides can streamline cross-border movement, protect trade corridors, and ensure a seamless travel experience for millions of international passengers.