Portugal and Italy are set to be the next holiday destinations to ditch controversial EU border checks to protect British tourists from the ‘shambolic’ rollout of the system, travel experts believe.
Greece has already dumped new Entry/Exit System (EES) rules until September for UK holidaymakers after they led to huge queues and delays.
The rules demand all non-EU visitors go to special kiosks at airports and border crossings to submit their biometric data – facial scans and fingerprints.
Portugal is already waving passengers through if queues get too big, and along with Italy is expected to follow Greece ahead of the May half-term in allowing tourists to enter on a passport stamp.
Spain, France and Croatia could follow as the EES ‘collapses like a house of cards’, with the rollout hit by faulty biometric technology and staff shortages.
Seamus McCauley, of travel company Holiday Extras, said many countries will have no choice but to defy the EU to protect the livelihoods of people dependant on tourism.
He added: ‘Countries are not going to sit back and let Greece take their trade because they won’t face EES delays at airports. To do so would be politically toxic as jobs are on the line.
‘The rollout has been an utter fiasco. British tourists are worth €3.5billion a year to the Greek economy and it has rightly decided it will not jeopardise that because EES is not working properly.’
Pictured: queues at Madrid's International Airport. Spain, France and Croatia could follow Portugal and Italy's move as the EES 'collapses like a house of cards'
The rollout of the EU border checks system has been called 'shambolic' as it was hit by faulty biometric technology and staff shortages
Mr McCauley said it ‘seems certain’ Portugal and Italy will soon follow suit, adding: ‘After that the whole system could collapse like a house of cards, with Spain, France and Croatia coming to the same conclusion because nobody wants to see their tourist trade go to another country simply to comply with the EU.’
Holiday Extras assessed UK visitor volumes, the severity of delays, value of tourism to destinations and how defiant countries have been to EU-imposed rules in the past to gauge who will follow Greece.
Mr Macauley added: ‘Greece broke ranks and Portugal keeps suspending the rules. Others are almost certain to follow. Something has to give.’
Travel experts believe Brussels is effectively toothless when it comes to taking action against Greece and countries who may follow its example.
Any financial penalty it can impose is dwarfed by the extra tourist income countries will make by avoiding chaos at their airport.
Even if the EU does take Greece to the European Court of Justice, that would be long after the end of the summer holidays – by which time Greece will have brought EES back on line.
Ryanair has also called on holiday destinations including France, Spain, Italy and Portugal to suspend EES. Its chief operations officer Neil McMahon said: ‘Governments are attempting to roll out a half-baked IT system in the middle of the busiest travel season.
‘Passengers are paying the price, being forced to endure hours-long passport control queues and in some cases missing flights. The solution is simple – governments should suspend EES until September.’
The EES became fully operational last month in the Schengen countries – 25 of the 27 EU states plus Iceland, Norway, Liechtenstein and Switzerland.
Non-Schengen passport holders must submit additional information, including a facial scan and fingerprints, when entering and exiting the EU.
The Association of British Travel Agents advised tourists to use the EES app, which allows them to register biometric data in advance.