New Biometric Checks Spark 90-Minute Passport Lines at Lisbon Airport
Holiday-makers landing in Lisbon this week have found an unpleasant surprise waiting for them before they can even collect their bags: passport queues stretching well past the hour-and-a-half mark. The logjam is hitting anyone who is not travelling within the Schengen area, and while the new European fingerprint-and-face checkpoints promise faster borders in the long run, the short-term pain is very real for residents and visitors alike.
Why queues are back at Lisbon's passport control
The spectacularly long lines – 90-minute waits on ordinary days and up to 4 hours during peak surges – are concentrated at Aeroporto Humberto Delgado, Portugal’s busiest hub. They affect non-Schengen arrivals and departures, especially since mid-October when record traffic coincided with the first fully operational days of the new system. A perfect storm of record traffic, mandatory biometric registration, and summer-level volumes on certain routes has stretched the pool of on-duty PSP officers just as the EES launch exposed an unexpected e-gates malfunction. For now, Schengen passengers remain largely unaffected, breezing through the domestic corridor in under 10 minutes.
Inside the new EES checkpoints
Branded the Entry/Exit System, the platform replaces the traditional passport stamp with a single digital stamp that stores fingerprints and facial scans. Portugal switched the system on 12 October, aligning with the Schengen-wide rollout. From that date every third-country traveller has their visit clocked into a border database that is meant to tighten security while speeding up future journeys. Officials stress the data privacy safeguards, yet the first pass through the mechanism – especially for people who have never travelled to Europe – involves first-time enrolment that simply takes longer. Add in the lengthy “soft launch” queues, and it is clear why longer processing is unavoidable until the 2026 target date for a continent-wide upgrade of revamped kiosks. Crucially, the system struggles most during flight banks when multiple wide-body arrivals crowd the RAPID lanes, compounding the technical glitches that still plague some e-gates.
How authorities are responding
To contain the fallout the government has ordered extra police shifts, while the PSP claims it has already reinforced staffing by bringing back a contingent of temporary SEF inspectors. A round of server upgrades and additional e-gates is also on the way, according to airport operator ANA. In the meantime, the company has deployed staff to hand out water and snacks to stranded travellers. Still, the PSP union warnings are blunt: without more officers and new hardware, delays could persist through Christmas. The Infrastructure Ministry insists a maximum wait pledge is imminent and is testing peak-hour contingency plans that expand the Fast Track channel and reiterate the now-familiar 3.5-hour advice for anyone holding a long-haul ticket.
What travellers can do until the system stabilises
Seasoned airport watchers recommend you arrive early and, when possible, book mid-week flights in the off-peak windows between midnight–06:00 and 13:00–15:00. Completing online check-in, keeping carry documents handy, or opting for a paid Fast Track purchase can shave minutes off. Families should look for dedicated family lanes, and those on tight connections are urged to allow extra connecting time or consult their airline’s mobile updates. The picture should brighten when ETIAS in 2026 replaces visa-waiver paperwork, and the winter lull traditionally reduces congestion, especially once the ongoing airport expansion progresses. Until then, travellers willing to fly via Porto or Faro – or use regional airports for long weekends – may skip the worst bottlenecks. If a delay forces a missed flight, TAP and most carriers are currently offering TAP rebooking at no additional cost when the hold-up exceeds 2 hours.