Low-cost carrier Ryanair has written to France’s Interior Minister, Laurent Nuñez, calling for an immediate suspension of the EU’s new Entry/Exit System (EES) until at least September. In an open letter published on 1 May, the airline warns that the ‘half-baked’ biometric kiosks being rolled out at French airports could lead to hour-long queues for families and large tour groups, jeopardising peak-season punctuality and connecting-flight integrity. Under EES, nationals of visa-waiver countries such as the UK, US and Australia must submit fingerprints and a facial photograph the first time they cross an external Schengen border. The Local reports that French airports have completed hardware installation, but staff training and live-passenger testing are lagging behind schedule.
![Ryanair urges France to pause new biometric EES checks ahead of summer rush]()
For travellers unsure how the new procedures might affect their upcoming trips, VisaHQ maintains an easy-to-use France portal (https://www.visahq.com/france/) that tracks EES implementation timelines, offers practical advice on documentation, and allows users to organise any additional visas or travel authorisations online—helping corporations and holiday-makers alike stay compliant with minimal fuss.
Ryanair claims the system “is not ready for real-world volumes” and that airlines will be blamed when travellers miss flights. It is asking France to invoke the flexibility clauses that allow Member States to suspend EES for limited periods during exceptional peaks. For multinational employers the stakes are high. Companies that routinely rotate staff through France on short-notice assignments could see immigration clearance times jump from 90 seconds to ten minutes per traveller if enrolment bottlenecks materialise. Mobility teams are therefore urged to add buffer time between arrival and onward meetings, pre-register frequent travellers where possible, and budget for potential overtime costs on chauffeured transfers. French officials have so far given no indication that they will comply with Ryanair’s demand. The Ministry of the Interior points out that France has already benefited from a EU-wide ‘progressive deployment’ phase that ran from October 2025 to April 2026 and says full compliance is now required. Airports operator Groupe ADP insists that extra staff and mobile registration units will be deployed at CDG, Orly and Nice to minimise disruption. Even if a blanket pause is rejected, experts say France could choose targeted mitigations—such as dedicated business-traveller lanes, increased use of PARAFE e-gates for returning visitors who have already enrolled, or temporary staffing surges funded by the Civil Aviation Tax. Until clarity emerges, corporates should monitor carrier alerts and advise travellers to allow extra time at border control from mid-May onward.
For travellers unsure how the new procedures might affect their upcoming trips, VisaHQ maintains an easy-to-use France portal (https://www.visahq.com/france/) that tracks EES implementation timelines, offers practical advice on documentation, and allows users to organise any additional visas or travel authorisations online—helping corporations and holiday-makers alike stay compliant with minimal fuss.
Ryanair claims the system “is not ready for real-world volumes” and that airlines will be blamed when travellers miss flights. It is asking France to invoke the flexibility clauses that allow Member States to suspend EES for limited periods during exceptional peaks. For multinational employers the stakes are high. Companies that routinely rotate staff through France on short-notice assignments could see immigration clearance times jump from 90 seconds to ten minutes per traveller if enrolment bottlenecks materialise. Mobility teams are therefore urged to add buffer time between arrival and onward meetings, pre-register frequent travellers where possible, and budget for potential overtime costs on chauffeured transfers. French officials have so far given no indication that they will comply with Ryanair’s demand. The Ministry of the Interior points out that France has already benefited from a EU-wide ‘progressive deployment’ phase that ran from October 2025 to April 2026 and says full compliance is now required. Airports operator Groupe ADP insists that extra staff and mobile registration units will be deployed at CDG, Orly and Nice to minimise disruption. Even if a blanket pause is rejected, experts say France could choose targeted mitigations—such as dedicated business-traveller lanes, increased use of PARAFE e-gates for returning visitors who have already enrolled, or temporary staffing surges funded by the Civil Aviation Tax. Until clarity emerges, corporates should monitor carrier alerts and advise travellers to allow extra time at border control from mid-May onward.
