The European Commission announced on Thursday, 4th June, that it has deployed 25 officers from Frontex and allocated around €8 million for infrastructure upgrades to help Portugal manage its borders following weeks of chaos linked to the EU's new Entry/Exit System (EES).
Frontex is the European Union agency responsible for managing the external borders of the Schengen free-travel area.
“With regard to Frontex, around 25 officers are currently deployed in Portugal, alongside document specialists who are assisting the Portuguese authorities in implementing the new rules. Funding is also available and, in total, Portugal has access to approximately €7–8 million for this purpose, mainly for infrastructure,” said the European Commissioner for Internal Affairs, Magnus Brunner.
Speaking to press at the start of the Justice and Home Affairs Council meeting in Luxembourg, Brunner stressed that “Portugal is doing everything possible to ensure the system works effectively”.
His remarks come two weeks after the European Commission rejected suggestions that lengthy queues at Portuguese airports were directly linked to the new EU Entry/Exit System, while the Portuguese government insisted the issue was European rather than uniquely Portuguese.
However, Brunner acknowledged that “Portugal has since carried out excellent preparatory work”.
“It has increased staffing levels, strengthened operational teams, improved its IT systems and invested in their development. We are there to provide support. Frontex officers and specialists are on the ground assisting Portugal,” he said.
Late last week, Portugal announced that it had activated a legal mechanism with EU institutions allowing authorities to suspend the collection of biometric data at airports for up to six hours in cases of severe delays at border controls. The measure is available until September as part of the adaptation period for the Entry/Exit System, introduced under the EU's migration and asylum pact.
“We created this measure specifically for countries facing greater pressure during the tourist season, such as Portugal,” Brunner said.
“Until September, it is possible to temporarily suspend the application of the system for up to six hours a day, this is provided for under the rules. After that, naturally, we must be fully prepared.”
Data provided by the European Commission shows that, across most member states, the average processing time for first-time registrations is just over one minute.
Since the system came into force in October 2025, nearly 90 million entries and exits have been recorded through the EES. More than 40,000 entry refusals have also been issued due to false or fraudulent travel documents, while over 800 individuals have been identified as posing a potential threat to EU security.
The Entry/Exit System is a digital platform designed to electronically record the arrival and departure of non-EU nationals travelling within the Schengen area, replacing passport stamps with biometric and digital records.
Under the rules, member states may temporarily revert to alternative procedures, including manual registration and passport stamping, in the event of technical failures until normal operations are restored.
In recent months, passengers have faced lengthy queues at Lisbon, Porto and Faro airports, raising concerns about the readiness of border infrastructure in one of Europe's busiest tourist destinations during the peak summer season.
Source: JN/Agências
Photo credit: Thomas Callan
