The European Commission has given Schengen members, Switzerland included, permission to suspend the mandatory capture of fingerprints and facial images at external borders when passenger queues become unmanageable. The flexibility took effect on 2 May, less than a month after the Entry/Exit System (EES) went fully live on 10 April. Swiss border guards at Zürich and Geneva airports can now revert temporarily to manual passport stamping whenever e-gates and biometric kiosks create excessive wait times. The decision follows reports of hour-long queues and missed connections at major hubs such as Paris-Charles-de-Gaulle and Amsterdam-Schiphol, where bottlenecks left carriers scrambling to rebook transit passengers. Importantly, the EES database itself continues to operate; the derogation only relaxes real-time collection of biometrics. Travellers from third countries will still have their entry and exit recorded, but the data may be uploaded retrospectively once congestion eases. Airlines remain obliged to transmit Advance Passenger Information (API) and Passenger Name Record (PNR) data.
![Schengen states—including Switzerland—may skip biometric checks during peak hours]()
For travelers who need clarity on visa types, biometric requirements, or Schengen stay limits, VisaHQ’s Switzerland portal (https://www.visahq.com/switzerland/) provides real-time guidance and application assistance, making it easier for both individuals and corporate travel teams to stay compliant amid these evolving border procedures.
For Swiss-based multinationals the change offers short-term relief at the height of the spring conference season. Travel managers should, however, retain the 30-minute connection buffers recently added to itineraries until performance data show sustained improvement. Employees holding single-entry Schengen visas need to note that manual stamps count toward their 90/180-day allowance, potentially altering overstay calculations. Looking ahead, Brussels insists the derogation is temporary. Member states are urged to accelerate kiosk procurement and staff training ahead of the digital Schengen visa and ETIAS launch, now slated for October 2026. Swiss authorities have already ordered an additional 120 biometric gates for Zürich and Basel airports, due to be installed by year-end.
For travelers who need clarity on visa types, biometric requirements, or Schengen stay limits, VisaHQ’s Switzerland portal (https://www.visahq.com/switzerland/) provides real-time guidance and application assistance, making it easier for both individuals and corporate travel teams to stay compliant amid these evolving border procedures.
For Swiss-based multinationals the change offers short-term relief at the height of the spring conference season. Travel managers should, however, retain the 30-minute connection buffers recently added to itineraries until performance data show sustained improvement. Employees holding single-entry Schengen visas need to note that manual stamps count toward their 90/180-day allowance, potentially altering overstay calculations. Looking ahead, Brussels insists the derogation is temporary. Member states are urged to accelerate kiosk procurement and staff training ahead of the digital Schengen visa and ETIAS launch, now slated for October 2026. Swiss authorities have already ordered an additional 120 biometric gates for Zürich and Basel airports, due to be installed by year-end.
