Dover and Eurotunnel report new EES delays

The Port of Dover and Eurotunnel, the primary routes for Brits travelling to the EU, are once again delaying Entry-Exit System (EES) biometric border checks, even as the April 10th deadline for the full launch of the system draws near.

The rollout has been pushed back after French authorities reported technical setbacks, a spokesperson for the Port of Dover said last Friday.

“We are working closely with our French border agency partners to ensure a smooth introduction of the EU Entry/Exit System (EES) for tourist passengers, which includes waiting until current issues with the French technology are resolved and thorough testing at Dover has been conducted,” the statement noted.

The Port of Dover has previously postponed EES registrations for car passengers at the request of French authorities.

Eurotunnel’s LeShuttle railway service said that full biometric checks will be introduced once it receives formal go-ahead from French and EU authorities.

Starting April 10th, French border police (Police aux Frontières or PAF) will begin manually registering car travellers in the EES at crossing points, though biometric data such as facial recognition and fingerprints will not be collected at the outset. Passport stamping will continue in the interim, according to Connexion France.

French border authorities intend to run passport lanes at full capacity, adapting operations to “deliver the high‑quality, stress-free travel experience customers expect from LeShuttle,” according to a Eurotunnel spokesperson.

The UK has been warning travelers to Europe of potential traffic disruptions and queues due to the introduction of the EES. Similar warnings can be heard across the Channel.

French port union requests meeting with gov over EES failures

Last week, a union representing French ports and commercial shipping warned of “serious risks of congestion and disorganisation” at the border this summer, requesting an urgent meeting with the ministers for the interior and transportation.

French port borders are seeing software failures in pre-registration kiosks and tablets which are preventing their proper use, the Union des Ports de France and Armateurs de France said in a letter addressed to the French government.

Another issue is that the current organisation of checks and staffing levels will not be able to handle expected high-season traffic volumes. The system has been designed with airport traveller flows in mind, making it ill-suited to the particular challenges of large numbers of passengers arriving by ferry in their vehicles.

“The consequences could be serious: massively lengthened turnaround times in port, knock-on delays to ferry services, deterioration of passengers’ experiences, security risks and a loss of competitiveness by French ports,” the letter notes.

The issues seem to go beyond technical difficulties: Ports de Normandie said earlier this month that it is still waiting for the state to deliver the pre-registration equipment, Connexion France reports.

Aside from sea ports, French airports are also struggling with the introduction of the new system. Last month, Aéroports de Paris (ADP) group, which manages Paris Orly and Roissy-Charles-de-Gaulle airports, has requested a postponement of further EES rollouts until after the tourist season.

According to the EU plan, all 29 Schengen area countries must have EES operational at every border crossing to record the entry of all third-country nationals by collecting their biographical and biometric data on April 10th.

Member states will be able to partially suspend EES operations where necessary during an additional 90-day period, with a possible 60-day extension to cover the summer peak. This means that manual passport stamping could remain in place at many crossings well into the summer.

Article Topics

biometrics  |  border security  |  Entry/Exit System (EES)  |  France  |  identity verification  |  UK