EES rollout: biometric checks are now live at EU borders under the new Entry/Exit System. Credit : Ivan Marc, Shutterstock
If you’re a Brit headed to the Continent or a non-EU expat living between the UK and Schengen, you’ve probably heard about the EU’s new Entry-Exit System (EES).
In plain English: on your first trip, border officers will take your fingerprints and a fresh photo before stamping you in. After that, it’s usually just a quick face check on later visits. The question everyone’s asking is the same: where are the slowest lines – and what time of day should you avoid?
Short answer: the longest waits are cropping up at big hubs with heavy morning arrivals and at the classic UK holiday gateways on weekend mornings. Think Amsterdam Schiphol, Paris-CDG and Frankfurt for the hub crowd; Faro, Palma de Mallorca, Milan Malpensa and Heraklion for the sunshine runs. It’s not chaotic everywhere, and many passengers are still sailing through – but timing and airport choice now matter more than they used to.
Busiest airports for first-time EES checks (hubs and holiday favourites)
Let’s start with the hotspots. According to the Independent, Amsterdam (AMS), Paris-CDG (CDG) and Frankfurt (FRA) sit right at the top because they swallow huge waves of long-haul arrivals from North America, the Gulf and Asia, all in tight morning banks. When a lot of those passengers are first-timers for EES, queues build quickly. If you’re landing into one of these hubs between breakfast and late morning — especially on a Friday or Monday – give yourself breathing room.
Then there are the leisure gateways. UK flights to Faro (FAO), Palma (PMI), Malpensa (MXP) and Heraklion (HER) tend to bunch up on Saturday and Sunday mornings, and that’s when lines lengthen. Families heading to the sun? The stroller-and-suitcase convoy at 09:30 is the classic pinch point. If you can shift your arrival to after lunch, you’ll usually notice the difference.
One thing that confuses people: two friends land the same day and have completely different experiences. That’s because rollout isn’t identical across Europe. Some countries are applying EES in full at every gate; others are phasing it in, flight by flight. Local staffing and the number of working kiosks also matter. So no, you’re not going mad – it really does vary by airport and hour.
Peak times to avoid (and the kinder hours to book)
You don’t need an insider spreadsheet to make better choices – just a rough sense of each airport’s rhythm. At Amsterdam, the airport actually publishes daily “peak moments” for arrivals, and they match what travellers are seeing: bursts in the early morning (roughly 07:40–09:20), another late morning wave (around 11:00–11:40), and a smaller bump early evening (about 18:20–20:20). Paris-CDG and Frankfurt run to a similar beat thanks to their long-haul banks: big transatlantic and Gulf arrivals before lunch, feeders nipping in around them, and everyone funnelled towards the same gates in a short window.
For the beach airports, weekends are the red flag. Saturday morning into Faro or Palma during school holidays is now very much a ‘plan for a queue’ moment. Land mid-afternoon instead and you’ll often stroll up to a free kiosk. Winter city breaks should be easier overall, and once you’ve done that first enrolment, future trips are typically quicker.
A simple travel playbook for UK flyers and non-EU expats
Here’s how to tilt the odds in your favour without turning trip planning into a full-time job.
Pick your hour, not just your fare. If two flights cost the same, choose the one that lands after lunch. You’ll often swap a 45-minute shuffle for a 10-minute tap-and-go.
Build a realistic connection. If you’re connecting via Amsterdam, Paris or Frankfurt, pad your inbound connection more than you used to — especially if it’s your first EES enrolment. A calm 2 hours beats a panicked 65 minutes and a jog across a terminal.
Do the first enrolment on your terms. Expats who cross frequently should get the “slow” first visit out of the way at a quiet time. After that, facial verification speeds things up — you’ll notice it on trip two.
Keep passports accessible, remove caps and sunglasses early, and follow staff instructions – families and assisted passengers are usually directed to dedicated lanes to help speed things up.
Rethink the classic UK getaway slot. That 06:00 departure to hit a 10:00 Mediterranean landing is a national habit — and exactly when queues spike. If your plans allow, slide to a later arrival or shift your trip a day. You’ll spend your first hour of holiday by the pool, not at the border.
Expect the learning curve to flatten. The initial spike is largely the “first-time effect”: lots of people enrolling at once. As repeat visitors cycle back through, pressure eases. Airports are adding lanes, tuning layouts and ironing out software snags as they go. This won’t feel new for long.
Airport-by-airport quick take (what to assume today)
Amsterdam (AMS): The clearest bellwether. Morning arrival banks are busy; early afternoon is consistently kinder. If you’re connecting long-haul to short-haul, give yourself time.
Paris-CDG (CDG): Similar pattern to AMS with chunky long-haul banks before lunch. Queues stretch when multiple wide-bodies land together; quieter after 14:00.
Frankfurt (FRA): Two daily swells – early morning and late afternoon – tied to the hub wave. Mid-afternoon remains your best bet.
Faro/Palma/Malpensa/Heraklion: Watch Saturdays and school holiday mornings. Land after lunch if you can; it’s the single biggest difference you control.
EES is an extra step on your first entry, not a permanent hurdle. For now, the busiest airports are the big hubs (AMS, CDG, FRA) and the classic UK holiday gateways at weekend mid-mornings. Time your arrival for the calmer hours, allow a touch more buffer on connections, and treat that first enrolment like a one-off admin job. Do that, and your next hop to Europe should feel much like it always did — only with a quicker wave through the gate.
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