New entry system leads to longer waits at Swiss airports

New system requires more time for border controls at airports Keystone-SDA

Air travellers from the US or the UK sometimes have to wait over an hour to enter Switzerland. The reason for this is a new European border control system.

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Entry and exit into and out of the Schengen area is recorded by the new so-called Entry/Exit System (EES). All persons who do not have a passport from a European Union country, Norway, Iceland, Liechtenstein or Switzerland are checked.

The system was implemented gradually over a period of months and has been in force throughout the Schengen area since April 10. So far, 90 million people have been registered, as Magnus Brunner, EU Commissioner for Home Affairs and Migration, told the media on Thursday in Luxembourg after a Schengen Council. That is around two million registrations per week.

Some 38,000 people had been refused entry, 1,000 of whom represented a security risk. According to the Austrian, the EES is “incredibly important” for the security of the EU.

Data collection delays entry

As all of Switzerland’s neighbouring countries are part of the Schengen area, the system is only used in Switzerland at airports and for flights coming from outside the Schengen area. This has been the case in Geneva since October 2025 and in Zurich since November 2025.

“In connection with EES, there have been and may continue to be longer waiting times at border control,” a spokeswoman for Zurich Airport told the Keystone-SDA news agency at the beginning of the week in response to an enquiry. The reason for this is that when third-country nationals without a valid residence permit in Switzerland or another Schengen state enter the country for the first time, a personal dossier is created in accordance with EU guidelines.

Personal details, travel document data and biometric data are recorded. The Zurich cantonal police are responsible for this at Zurich Airport. “The process is correspondingly time-consuming,” continues the airport spokesperson.

In general, the system is stable and reliable. In rare cases, however, there are waiting times of one and up to two hours. This is particularly the case when several flights from outside the Schengen area arrive together. It is assumed that the processes will continue to improve with increasing routine.

Ski holidays caused longer waiting times in Geneva

Due to the ski holidays, there were longer waiting times at Geneva Airport in January and February when there was a high volume of travellers. “On the most difficult day, the waiting time was two and a half hours,” said an airport spokesperson on enquiry. More than 70,000 passengers use the airport on such days.

In Geneva, unlike in Zurich, the Federal Office for Customs and Border Security (BAZG) is responsible for controls. In response to an enquiry, the BAZG stated that the EES is working well globally. However, the system has lengthened the inspection times, according to a spokeswoman for the BAZG. However, the processes are constantly being optimised.

Translated from German by AI/jdp

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