EU raging as Greece changes passport rules for UK tourists | Travel News | Travel

The European Union has reportedly been left infuriated by Greece after the country suspended the new Entry/Exit border control system (EES) for the summer, following chaos at its airports. Following the system’s launch on April 10, popular holiday destinations across Europe have been plagued by long queues, delays and missed flights.

However, barely a week later, the Greek Embassy said in an update on its website on April 17 that British passport holders arriving in Greece would not have to submit to the biometric data for at least the summer. This has made the country even more attractive to UK holidaymakers, prompting competing destinations such as Italy and Portugal to consider doing the same for their arrivals. In Spain, authorities are facing pressure to follow suit after it allegedly made minor tweaks to the system that have done little to alleviate the issues, prompting airlines to ramp up pressure for a suspension until after the peak season.

The EES digitally registers non-EU nationals each time they cross the external borders of the Schengen Area for short stays. It replaces the old manual passport stamping method. Upon your first entry, you will use a self-service kiosk to scan your passport and provide biometric data – a facial photo and fingerprints. Once registered, your movements, including the dates and locations of entry and exit, will be automatically logged, and travellers will not be required to re-enter their biometrics for up to 3 years.

However, despite calls from the travel industry for EES to be lifted, the European Commission – the EU’s main executive body – has confirmed that neither Portugal nor Italy will be suspending digital border checks for Britons, the Majorca Daily Bulletin reported.

Ryanair is leading the charge to have the entire system lifted until after the peak holiday season. Its Chief Operations Officer, Neal McMahon, said: “It makes no sense that countries, like Spain, are continuing to implement the EU’s new Entry/Exit System (EES) when they are clearly not ready to do so. As a result of this half-baked system roll out, passengers are being forced to endure excessive passport control queues, and in some cases, missing flights.

“This May Bank Holiday weekend alone, passengers travelling to/from Spain were made to suffer hour-long passport control queues. Ryanair’s average flight time is approximately 1hr 15mins – that means that some passengers are spending as much time waiting at passport control than they spent on the flight that got them there.”

According to the EU rulebook, the only legal exception to the new system included in the roll-out is the possibility to pause biometric collection for six-hour windows during exceptionally busy times – a flexibility that can be applied until September under certain conditions.

The statement on the Greek Embassy’s website on April 17 read: “Update for British passport holders travelling to Greece. In the framework of the implementation of the Entry/Exit System (EES), as of 10 April 2026, British passport holders are exempt from biometric registration at Greek border crossing points.”

There was no further detail of how long the exemption would last, but, commenting on the announcement, Britain’s ambassador to Greece, Eleni Skarveli, the UK director of the Greek National Tourism Organisation, said: “The exemption of British passport holders from biometric registration at Greek border crossing points, effective from 10 April 2026, is expected to significantly reduce waiting times and ease congestion at airports.”

She added: “The Greek National Tourism Organisation remains committed to ensuring a seamless and welcoming journey for all visitors from the UK.”