Travel Groups Urge EU to Suspend EES as 5-Hour Border Queues Hit Summer Flights

Q: Could Europe's new digital border cost its economy over $45 billion this summer alone?

Yes — but the $45.4 billion figure is a risk estimate, not a confirmed summer loss. The warning comes from research cited by the World Travel & Tourism Council, which says prolonged EES-related border delays could put about 41 million arrivals and $45.4 billion in visitor spending at risk if three- to four-hour waits become a persistent feature. That estimate appears to cover 2026 travel demand more broadly, not strictly July and August alone. The immediate concern is summer because Europe’s airports expect roughly 40 million additional passengers in July and August, and industry groups say the new Entry/Exit System is already producing five-hour queues, missed flights and aircraft leaving half-empty. Airports Council International Europe, Airlines for Europe and IATA have told the European Commission that the disruption has reached a “critical point” and could worsen during the peak season. So the economic threat is credible, especially for tourism-dependent sectors such as hotels, restaurants, retail and transport. But it would be more accurate to say Europe could lose up to $45.4 billion if the delays become entrenched through the peak season and beyond, rather than to say that amount will be lost this summer alone. The scale of the risk depends on whether the EU and member states can ease bottlenecks quickly through more staffing, wider use of kiosks and pre-registration, and temporary flexibility to suspend EES checks when border facilities are overwhelmed.

3 articles · Updated · The Guardian · Jul 2

Airports, airlines and travel groups asked the European Commission to pause the EU Entry/Exit System for the summer peak, saying border waits have climbed to as much as five hours since April.
The biometric regime requires most non-EU travellers, including Britons, to register facial images and fingerprints before entering the Schengen area, adding checks that carriers say are leaving some flights half full.
Lisbon suspended the system after seven-hour waits last year, while passengers were stranded in Milan in April and missed flights from Athens and Malaga after long queues.
French police already used an EES clause to temporarily relax checks at Dover in May, but ACI Europe said only national governments can decide on wider suspensions.
Passengers who miss flights may get little help: airlines can treat border delays as extraordinary circumstances, insurers say losses are unlikely to be covered, and one family paid £1,000 for replacement tickets.