Beat Europe’s New Biometric Lines: Smart Tips to Speed Through Passport Control

European airports are seeing longer lines due to the rollout of the Entry and Exit System (EES), which requires first-time visitors to scan passports, take a photo, and provide fingerprints. While lines should ease as more travelers complete registration, you can minimize delays by arriving early (4 hours before departure), allowing longer layovers (3+ hours for Schengen connections), and choosing arrival airports with shorter queues (Madrid, Barcelona, Copenhagen, Helsinki, Zurich) over hubs like Amsterdam, Paris CDG, Berlin, Krakow, Lisbon.