I have been carefully following the rollout of the European Union’s new entry/exit system, as I’ve 5 Schengen space entries or exits coming between its launch on Oct. 12 and the tip of 2025. I would seen a number of articles noting three-hour immigration traces on arrival to some European airports because the Oct. 12 launch, however typically obtained the impression that the rollout was going easily and that departure immigration often wasn’t experiencing vital traces.
Nonetheless, I wished to remain knowledgeable, so within the days main as much as my Oct. 20 flight from Brussels to Toronto, I checked the Brussels Airport (BRU) web site and social media and looked for current information articles or press releases relating to the entry/exit system’s rollout. I discovered no notable info or reviews, so I figured the system’s implementation was going easily, or maybe hadn’t began. In any case, some entry/exit factors opted for a partial or delayed rollout.
Sadly, I confronted a major wait time for exit immigration in Brussels — a lot in order that I nearly missed my transatlantic flight. And though faster, the queue upon arrival again in Brussels was nonetheless longer than traditional. Listed below are my experiences and ideas in case you plan to go to the EU with a non-EU passport within the coming months as extra airports start implementing the brand new system.
My expertise with exit immigration in Brussels
I had a 9:40 a.m. flight from Brussels to Toronto on Oct. 20. From the place I used to be staying, I might take a practice one cease to the airport each half-hour. So, I made a decision on a practice departure that will arrive on the airport 110 minutes forward of my flight. Contemplating I hadn’t learn any destructive reviews concerning the departure immigration at BRU, I figured this is able to give me sufficient time to climate any barely longer than traditional immigration traces and go to the lounge earlier than boarding.
Nevertheless, the practice I would deliberate to take was canceled on the final minute, and Google Maps indicated driving would take nearly so long as ready for the subsequent practice. Even with the cancelled practice, I arrived on the airport 80 minutes earlier than departure and reached the immigration queue 62 minutes earlier than departure.
Solely EU passport holders might use the self-serve immigration kiosks once I was departing from Brussels. I solely word this as a result of TPG’s Eric Rosen, who’s a U.S. citizen, was in a position to make use of such a kiosk on Oct. 13 when departing from Amsterdam. However once I departed from Brussels per week later, all non-EU passport holders have been being processed by simply two police brokers (a 3rd agent began processing vacationers as I neared the entrance of the queue).
As the road moved slowly, I nervously in contrast my progress towards the time that had elapsed and started to get a sinking feeling: I would not make my flight.
Airport representatives within the immigration space instructed passengers involved that they’d miss their flight that the airways would maintain planes for passengers caught in immigration. I suspected this would not be the case, however fortunately, a sort passenger close to the entrance of the road instructed me to go in entrance of him.
After I reached the police agent for immigration, he did not ask any questions, gather any biometric knowledge, and even flip by my passport. As an alternative, he mentioned the pc was working effectively for my passport and stamped my passport. Regardless of the laptop was doing took about 5 instances so long as it often does when coming into or exiting the Schengen space.
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As soon as I cleared the immigration sales space, I ran to my gate. After I scanned my boarding cross, it gave an error, and the gate agent famous that the check-in agent marked me as a late check-in. This shocked me because the check-in agent did not inform me this, and I had checked in effectively forward of Air Canada’s said bag drop deadline. Fortunately, the gate agent might nonetheless load me and my checked bag onto the flight.
Based mostly on the minimal variety of passengers who boarded after me, and the boarding full name only a few minutes after I boarded, I used to be one of many last passengers to make the flight. As I suspected, Air Canada did not await passengers caught in immigration; a flight attendant instructed me 25 passengers missed the flight, together with 4 within the premium economic system cabin.
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My expertise with arrival immigration in Brussels
On my approach again to the EU, I took a London-to-Brussels flight noon on Oct. 24. After my expertise with the immigration queue leaving Brussels a number of days prior, I used to be ready for an extended arrival immigration wait. I selected a seat close to the entrance of my British Airways flight to Brussels and moved swiftly from the aircraft to the immigration processing heart after deplaning.
The arrival space featured 12 self-service immigration kiosks, however solely EU passport holders might use these kiosks. 9 cubicles have been staffed with immigration brokers on my arrival, however two have been reserved for EU passport holders who could not use the self-service kiosks, and 5 have been reserved for vacationers who wanted a visa.
This left simply two kiosks for non-EU passport holders who did not want a visa, so the queue was lengthy and slow-moving. Though I consider I used to be the primary particular person within the queue from my flight, it nonetheless took me 40 minutes to clear immigration. The road obtained considerably longer as I used to be in it, as passengers from my flight and seemingly a number of others joined the gang.
As on my departure a number of days earlier, the immigration brokers weren’t gathering biometric knowledge or asking questions. As an alternative, the brokers appeared to simply be utilizing the brand new laptop system and stamping passports. As earlier than, the agent barely flipped by my passport earlier than stamping a web page and waving me by.
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Classes discovered and recommendation
The 29 nations utilizing the brand new entry/exit system have till April 10 to completely combine the system. So, you by no means fairly know what you would possibly get once you enter or exit one in every of these nations between Oct. 12 and April 10. You would possibly get the pre-Oct. 12 system and expertise, you would possibly get the total biometric knowledge assortment and questions expertise, otherwise you would possibly face one thing in between.
As such, it is inconceivable to understand how lengthy the wait might be earlier than your departure or after your arrival. Because of this, do not make my mistake. As an alternative, depart your self loads of time when arriving in or departing from one of many 29 collaborating nations. Then … effectively, discover a lounge to go to when you clear immigration.
Likewise, give your self loads of time after you arrive to clear immigration. After clearing immigration and customs, I wanted to take a once-per-hour practice from Brussels Airport to Rotterdam, within the Netherlands. I might have saved cash by buying a ticket for a selected practice prematurely, however I opted for a costlier versatile ticket that will let me take any practice that day as a result of I could not predict how lengthy I would want to attend in immigration queues.
Nevertheless, it is value checking your entry/exit level’s social media and web site to see whether or not they have any updates or helpful info relating to the entry/exit system. For instance, the Amsterdam airport web site notes it is not implementing the entry/exit system till Nov. 3. Fortunate me, as I am departing from Amsterdam on Nov. 6.
Likewise, examine whether or not there’s something you are able to do to hurry up the immigration course of. For instance, in case you’re coming into or exiting Sweden, take into account downloading the Journey to Europe cellular app. Hopefully, extra nations will start utilizing this app to gather knowledge, and I count on it is going to unlock some shorter queues for vacationers who decide to make use of it.
Should you’re on a brief connection on a single ticket, the airline might defend you in case you miss your connection as a consequence of lengthy switch immigration traces. Nevertheless, I would advocate reserving connections of not less than 4 hours in case you are coming into or leaving any of the 29 European nations utilizing the brand new entry/exit system throughout your layover, to save lots of your self the effort of modifications and rebooking do you have to encounter an extended queue.
If attainable, you might wish to maintain off on visiting the 29 nations altogether till they clean out their system. Many nations gather biometric knowledge and passport scans on arrival and departure — together with Canada, Singapore and Australia — however the traces are minimal. I count on, given a while, the EU entry/exit system course of will velocity up.
In fact, you might not need or be capable of keep away from visiting the Schengen space anytime quickly. For instance, a number of occasions will take me again to Europe this fall and spring. So, in case you should go, simply give your self loads of time.
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Backside line
Dangerous luck with a cancelled practice and underestimating how lengthy the exit immigration would absorb Brussels nearly led to me lacking a transatlantic flight. This could have been an costly mistake, as I possible would have wanted to purchase a brand new ticket since it might have been my fault (not the airline’s) that I missed the flight.
So be ready for immigration to take for much longer than you count on whereas the Schengen zone nations work out the bugs of their programs. And — particularly in case you’re on a wide-body aircraft — take into account choosing a seat close to the entrance of the aircraft so that you will be one of many first passengers in your flight to succeed in the immigration checkpoint.
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