LISBON – The Portuguese government has decided to suspend for three months the application of the European entry and exit control system, the Entry Exit System (EES), at Humberto Delgado Airport, in Lisbon. The measure was announced this Tuesday (30), after weeks of complaints from passengers about queues that exceeded six hours at border control, especially in the arrivals area.
Brazilians who disembarked at the airport, with a lack of water, food and access to bathrooms, as well as elderly people and children waiting standing. In some reports, passengers claimed to have waited up to 8 hours, and even lay on the floor while waiting for assistance.
In a statement sent to newsrooms, the Ministry of Internal Affairs stated that the constraints are associated with the implementation of the new European border control system, which replaced manual stamps with centralized electronic records. According to the government, the impact has been more significant on passenger arrivals from outside the Schengen Area, while in the departures area waiting times have been reduced in recent months.
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Faced with this scenario, the executive ordered the immediate suspension of the EES at Lisbon airport, under European regulations that govern the functioning of the system. The interruption will initially last for three months.
In addition to the suspension, the government decided to strengthen the airport’s external border control capacity. An increase of around 30% in the number of electronic and physical equipment available is expected, up to the limit allowed by the current airport infrastructure. The expense associated with this reinforcement was approved at the Council of Ministers meeting held on Monday (29).
The plan also includes the reinforcement of human resources at the airport, with the use of the Republican National Guard for border control, allowing an immediate increase in the number of personnel on duty at Humberto Delgado Airport.
With the set of measures, the government states that it intends to reduce waiting times in the arrivals area and mitigate the problems that have worsened in recent weeks, the target of recurring complaints from passengers who reported long queues at passport control.
