Portugal's major airports, including Lisbon, Porto, and Faro, have alerted non-EU travelers to expect passport control waits of up to two hours during the Easter rush due to the implementation of the EU's new Entry/Exit System (EES).www.visahq.comwww.theportugalnews.com The warning, issued late on April 1, targets the peak holiday period as border agents aim to register 100% of third-country nationals by the EU-mandated March 31 deadline ahead of the system's formal launch on April 9. This digital system requires biometric data collection, such as facial scans and fingerprints, at kiosks, exacerbating congestion at key gateways popular with over 3 million annual Brazilian visitors.veritas.enc.edu

Recent passenger complaints highlight the challenges, with social media reports of up to 2.5- to 4-hour delays at Lisbon Airport in late March, prompting temporary halts and a gradual rollout. Authorities attribute these "punctual" issues to high volumes of simultaneous arrivals from outside the Schengen Area, and they've deployed extra staff from regional airports while trialing mobile queue-management apps and self-service biometric lanes. The Portuguese Interior Ministry (MAI) notes that full EES operations will commence on April 10, with apps like Travel2Europe allowing pre-arrival questionnaires to speed processing.

To mitigate impacts, travelers—especially those on Brazilian passports without EU dual citizenship—are advised to allow extra connection time and monitor updates, as queues should ease once biometrics are stored for repeat visitors. Airlines and airport groups like ACI Europe and A4E have echoed these concerns across the EU, warning of "operational issues" during Easter. The upcoming ETIAS authorization system later in 2026 will add further pre-travel requirements, underscoring the need for advance planning amid ongoing Schengen digitization.www.thetimes.com