Lisbon, May 22, 2026 (Lusa) – Portugal's Economy and Territorial Cohesion Minister, Manuel Castro Almeida, expressed confidence in parliament on Friday that delays in arrivals at Lisbon airport will be resolved "in the very short term."
"I and the entire government are equally concerned about what has been happening at the airport, particularly at Lisbon airport," he said when questioned by the PS party regarding long waiting times at the airport and the potential damage to tourism.
"I am completely confident that, in the very short term, the situation will be resolved as it should be, because it is essential for tourism to grow and develop as it has been growing," said the minister responsible for tourism. He added that the ministers of infrastructure and interior had clarified the situation and explained how they intend to resolve it.
The European border control system for non-EU citizens, known as the European Union's Entry/Exit System (EES), rolled out progressively across the bloc, with full implementation scheduled for April.
The EES, which replaced passport stamping with a digital register of photographs and fingerprints for non-EU passengers, entered service gradually in Portugal and the rest of the Schengen area on 12 October 2025. Since then, waiting times have worsened, especially at Lisbon airport.
Border control recorded waiting times exceeding two hours at Porto airport and an hour and a half at Lisbon and Faro airports on Sunday morning. The Public Security Police (PSP – responsible for border control) attributed the delays to technical and IT issues combined with a high volume of passengers from outside the Schengen area.
The interior ministry on Monday refused to suspend the application of the new European border control system at airports during the summer. However, the ministry acknowledged that biometric data collection could be paused for limited periods.
The ministry said that "the applicable European framework permits, under exceptional, strictly limited circumstances, the option of suspending biometric collection (facial images and fingerprints), at specific border crossings when traffic intensity might generate excessive waiting times."
Portugal's Prime Minister, Luís Montenegro, acknowledged the possibility of suspending biometric data collection, expressing dissatisfaction with border control services due to the long airport queues.
"We do not want to jeopardise the country's security, but we also do not want to jeopardise the country's economic movement," he said, adding that he had received reports from "several business operators troubled by the situation."
Portugal's Infrastructure and Housing Minister, Miguel Pinto Luz, said on Monday that service at Lisbon Airport will improve next month following the completion of expansion work in the arrivals area.
When questioned about border control delays at Portuguese airports, he said that the government is making every effort, with the European Commission and internally, to resolve the issue.
He acknowledged that the EES "has real problems that are causing constraints" at airports and damaging Portugal's international image.
The European Commission denied on Thursday that airport queues in Portugal stem from the new EES, pointing out that registration processing takes just over one minute on average.
"The Commission will remain in contact with Portugal on this matter and will continue to provide the necessary support. The challenges faced in Portugal, including longer waiting times, are not related to any problems in the functioning of the Entry/Exit System," it said.
During the first four months of this year, the PSP checked nearly 6.3 million passengers at national airports, acknowledging that waiting times exceeded desirable levels at certain moments.
RCS/RYOL // AYLS
Lusa
