The EES system introduced biometric border checks for travellers from outside the EU when it launched. Ryanair says it is still causing problems months on, and the timing could hardly be worse, with the UK schools now off and passenger numbers at their summer high.
Lanzarote appears by name on the airline's list of affected airports, alongside Tenerife South, Madrid, Alicante, Málaga and Lisbon, plus a run of others in Italy, Germany and central Europe. Ryanair's complaint is that the self-service kiosks meant to speed things up are still not fully working at many airports, and that neither the staffing nor the border facilities can handle the peak-season crowds. Queues lengthen and processing slows as a result.
The delay comes down to what the checks involve. A passenger travelling between the UK and the Schengen area can be asked to scan a passport, register fingerprints and have a photo taken at the border. That is manageable for one traveller and a bottleneck for a planeload.
The airline is calling for the current grace period to be extended into early 2027 so that airports can repair kiosks, improve facilities and hire more staff before the system becomes mandatory. A number of EU governments want the same delay.
Chief Operations Officer Neal McMahon said holidaymakers ought to be enjoying the start of their trip rather than standing in a passport queue for hours. In his view the system is not yet fit for purpose, and passengers should not be treated as a trial run for border technology that has not been finished.
The upshot for your trip
None of this is a reason to rethink a holiday. It is a reason to leave a bigger margin at the airport, especially on the way home, since the exit checks leaving the Schengen area are where queues build the most. Arrive at Lanarote Airport earlier than you might normally bother to, and be ready for passport control to take longer than usual.
Beyond that, it is worth remembering the check happens once at each end and has nothing to do with your time on the island. A little extra time built into the airport run, and it stays a minor irritation rather than a ruined day.
