Know before you cross.
Check airport waits, plan your 90/180 days, and understand the EU Entry/Exit System before you travel.
Independent tools and plain-English guidance for planning your next Schengen crossing.
Plan around busy hours
These waits are modelled from today's flight schedule. They are planning estimates, not live measurements. View all hubs
Longest documented queues: Brussels, up to 5h, Paris, up to 4h, Amsterdam, up to 4h. See the full incident list.
Choose your next step
Start with live conditions, then use the guides and tools that match your trip.
See live wait times
Check current first-entry and exit queues by airport, then report a wait you have seen.
Find your airport
Compare EES status, kiosk counts, issues, and typical entry times.
Find the worst queues
Review documented peaks and the incidents behind them before you fly.
Use the travel checklist
Prepare before booking, before flying, and at the kiosk.
Understand EES
Get the short version of the biometric border check, exemptions, kiosk steps, and how EES differs from ETIAS.
A quick airport snapshot
Five airports from the tracker. View all 128 airports or browse the documented peaks.
| Airport | City | Country | First-entry est. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Vienna International Airport (VIE) | Vienna | Austria | ~5 min |
| Salzburg Airport (SZG) | Salzburg | Austria | ~5 min |
| Innsbruck Airport (INN) | Innsbruck | Austria | ~5 min |
| Brussels Airport (BRU) | Brussels | Belgium | ~7 min |
| Brussels South Charleroi Airport (CRL) | Charleroi | Belgium | ~5 min |
EES questions answered
What is EES?
The Entry/Exit System (EES) is an EU-wide digital border system that replaces passport stamping for non-EU nationals entering the Schengen Area for short stays. It records each traveler’s name, passport data, date and place of entry and exit, and biometric data (four fingerprints plus a facial image) at a self-service kiosk or staffed booth on first entry.
When did EES go live?
EES was phased in starting 12 October 2025 and became fully operational across all 29 Schengen countries on 10 April 2026. From that date, every external Schengen border - air, land, and sea - is required to register non-EU short-stay travelers in EES.
Who does EES apply to?
EES applies to non-EU nationals travelling to the Schengen Area for short stays of up to 90 days in any 180-day period. That includes visa-exempt nationalities (US, UK, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Japan and others) as well as short-stay Schengen visa holders.
Who is exempt from EES?
EU, EEA (Norway, Iceland, Liechtenstein) and Swiss citizens are exempt. Also exempt: holders of long-stay (national) visas, holders of EU residence permits, diplomats and service-passport holders on official travel, NATO SOFA-status personnel, stateless persons with refugee travel documents, and holders of local border traffic permits.
Do I need to use the kiosk every time I enter?
Yes for the biographic and exit check - but only the first entry requires full biometric enrolment. On subsequent entries within the 3-year retention window, the system reuses your stored biometrics; most airports use facial recognition at a fast lane, which typically completes in 30-60 seconds.
How long does first-entry EES registration take?
Typically 3 to 7 minutes per traveler on first entry, depending on the airport, kiosk availability, and language selection. Families and groups should expect longer total times. Airports with pre-registration apps (Finland, Netherlands, some French terminals) can shorten this to under 2 minutes.
