Survey reveals travellers may not come to Europe due to EES fears
Around a third of visitors from the UK, US, Canada and Australia would be less likely to travel to the Schengen area if regular waits due to the rollout of the new EU border system would reach three to four hours, the World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC) has warned.
A survey of more than 2,500 travellers carried out in four countries showed that on average 33 percent could avoid travelling to the Schengen area if queues were to regularly exceed three hours. On this basis, the WTTC estimated that up to 41 million arrivals could be at risk “from four of Europe’s most important source markets.”
Among respondents, Britons were the least likely to travel in long-wait scenarios (39 percent), followed by US and Canadian citizens (33 percent), and Australians (27 percent).
However, the survey also showed that 87 percent of respondents were willing to “accept some disruption if future travel becomes smoother”, 65 percent supported the EES after learning about it and 6 percent were “very negative towards the use of biometric border controls”.
Travellers also pointed at benefits of the EU system, including border security (57 percent), quicker processing on future trips (52 percent) and “greater confidence in border controls” (43 percent).
WTTC President and CEO Gloria Guevara commented: “As with any major transformation, there will inevitably be teething problems. The challenge now is not whether EES should proceed, but how governments, border authorities and the travel and tourism sector work together to ensure implementation is as smooth as possible”.
The group called for the fast adoption of a pre-registration app, functioning equipment, sufficient staffing levels and measures to streamline processing at border crossing points, as well as a communication campaign to inform travellers.
The research revealed that more than half of travellers (55 per cent) have heard little or nothing about the EES, and 49 per cent do not know what is required of them when entering or exiting the Schengen Area.
The Entry/Exit System (EES), which replaces the manual stamping of passports with digital records held in a EU-wide database, has been gradually introduced since 12 October 2025 with the full roll out beginning on April 10th 2026.
Under the EES regulation, biometric data have to be taken in front of border guards at the first entry in the Schengen area. While the implementation has been smooth in some locations, long queues and delays have been recorded in others, with concerns raised over tourists arrivals during the summer season.
Ferry ports sound alarm
The European Sea Ports Organisation (ESPO), which represents national ports associations and administrations at the EU level, has called for flexibility if there re severe disruptions at ferry ports this summer.
The organisation said lessons should be learned from the recent long delays at the port of Dover in May.
“The congestion experienced at the Port of Dover during the recent May bank holiday weekend, which resulted in significant delays for passengers and vehicles, highlights the importance of ensuring sufficient operational flexibility when implementing the EES,” the ESPO statement says.
READ ALSO: EES border system suspended at Dover amid bank holiday chaos
“The temporary relaxation of EES checks by the French authorities, in accordance with the flexibility mechanisms provided under the applicable legal framework completely alleviated the situation, but not until severe congestion affecting passengers, trade and local communities had already occurred,” the group added.
“The summer period will be the first real stress test of the EES for some of Europe’s major maritime Schengen border-crossing points… We must ensure that the long-awaited holiday season does not turn into a period of stress for families and professional drivers alike,” said ESPO’s Secretary General Isabelle Ryckbost.
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