Passengers arriving at Germany's two largest airports, in Frankfurt and Munich, faced some of the longest delays at passport controls in Europe due to the new system.
Waiting times at two major German airports have doubled due to delays from the implementation of new EES border checks, airport data obtained by the Financial Times has revealed.
The EU's new Entry/Exit System (EES) has been gradually introduced since October 12th, 2025 and fully operational from April 10th, 2026.
The EES records in an EU-wide database each entry and exit to the Schengen area of non-EU short-term visitors. The system, designed to detect overstayers, replaced the manual stamping of passports and takes biometric data such as fingerprint scans.
READ ALSO: Which European countries are already using the EES pre-registration app?
However, aviation industry experts and travellers across Europe have complained of disrupted travel and long delays since the EES system went fully operational.
New travel data reported by the Financial Times, however, has laid bare just how bad the situation has become at some of Germany's major air hubs.
Data from travel analytics group Qsensor provided to the Financial Times shows that both Munich and Frankfurt airports have seen their average wait times double year-on-year.
At Munich airport, the average 'maximum queue time' has gone from 31 minutes last year in 2025 to 60 minutes in July 2026.
Average wait times at Frankfurt reached 120 minutes, double the 60 minutes in July 2025.
A spokesperson for Frankfurt airport told the Financial Times that EES implementation had indeed contributed to "departure delays and further operational disruptions".
Qsensor's data tracks airport queues throughout the day, with averages based on both publicly available airport information and passenger reports.
The firm also highlighted that increased EES wait times are particularly impacting British and American tourists arriving in Europe.
Oliver Maxfield, founder of Qsensor, told the Financial Times: "With increasing wait times, we’re seeing a surge in anxiety from both British and North American holidaymakers about how long they’ll stand in line".
Recent reporting from Politico also revealed that some airports were simply turning the system off to avoid delays.
"The EU’s new biometric border-check system is causing such long delays for summer travellers that some airports are turning to a simple solution: switching it off when they're overwhelmed by arriving travellers," it said.
Several EU countries have reportedly requested the ability to extend suspensions beyond September.
The European Commission said in a recent statement: "When it comes to the time after the summer, we are in close and constructive contact with those few member states where there are challenges at certain border crossing points," adding that the average EES wait time is just 70 seconds.
The delays are not only a German problem, however.
In July European airport bosses warned that new EU border checks are significantly increasing waiting times for British nationals arriving in the bloc, in some cases tripling the average.
