EES will introduce biometric checks at external EU borders, including with the UK. It had been scheduled to launch in May 2023 but that has now been postponed until the end of this year due to contracting delays.

The postponement has been welcomed by leading aviation groups, including Airlines for Europe (A4E), Iata and airports association ACI Europe. 

In a joint statement, the bodies said that EES would be a “game changer” in the management of the EU’s borders but “a number of issues” had to be resolved to ensure a smooth introduction of the system that did not result in disruption for airline passengers.

“The aviation industry is fully behind the roll out of EES and is committed to working with the EU and national authorities for a successful implementation,” said the groups in their statement. 

“But it is important the EU and national authorities address industry concerns and provide efficient coordination for an effective implementation.”

The issues identified include “wider adoption and effective implementation” of automation at borders, ensuring countries provide funding to train a sufficient number of staff at airports and the need for a public communications campaign to alert travellers from non-EU countries, such as the UK, about the changes.

“Postponing the implementation until after the busy 2023 summer period will give airlines, airports, EU and national authorities the opportunity to resolve these issues and ensure the system is fully tested,” the aviation groups added.

“We therefore urge all those involved to make the best use of the extra time now available to address the outstanding issues and ensure enough resources are deployed for its introduction. 

“A new start date for EES should be set to ensure continued smooth aviation operations and in particular trouble-free processing of passengers at airports. This will help deliver the time savings the European Commission identified as the biggest benefit of EES.”

The EU is due to publish a revised timeline for the launch of EES next month, although stakeholders have been advised to continue to prepare for a target launch date by “the end of 2023”.

The implementation of the EU’s new US-style electronic travel authorisation system Etias has already been put back to late 2023.