This approach, reported by Diário de Notícias, reflects optimism about handling more passengers.
Modernising airport processes
Authorities are working to modernise and simplify airport processes.
They are bringing back the Entry/Exit System (EES). This system automatically records when travellers enter and leave the country.
Authorities expect it to be fully running by 10 April. The Ministry of Home Affairs (MAI) sees this as a positive move. MAI believes that new technology and better operations will make travel in Portugal smoother and safer.
Robust backup plan
To help this project succeed and avoid problems, officials have put in place a robust backup plan. They are focusing on adding more staff. They are also using new digital tools.
The PSP has added 30 specially trained officers at Lisbon Airport and 15 at Faro Airport. This increases the number of staff available to help at the counters. PSP has also installed self-service kiosks. Passengers from outside the EU can quickly collect their biometric data themselves.
Using the new travel app
The government recommends that travellers use the new Travel to Europe app, which lets them complete the entry questionnaire up to 72 hours before arrival.
Bruno Pereira, president of the National Union of Police Officers (SNOP), says the benefit is clear. "By using the app with the data already filled in, time is saved," he explains. The QR code means travellers do not have to answer the same questions at the border. This speeds up the process for everyone.
“Occasional delays”
Even with these efforts to improve, the system still faces problems. For example, on 24 March, some passengers waited up to four hours.
The MAI explains these long waits as "occasional delays." These happen during short periods of heavy traffic from outside the Schengen Area. They say authorities are working together to reduce the impact. However, some unions argue that technology by itself may not fix the main issues.
Rui Paiva, from the Criminal Investigation Personnel Union of the Judicial Police (PJ), warns that "the system, as it is currently set up, does not work" due to limitations in the airport’s design.
The SNOP also says the airport’s infrastructure is "structurally insufficient" for the rising number of non-EU passengers. They argue that, in addition to hiring more officers and using digital tools, the airport urgently needs more service counters. It also needs physical upgrades to handle the record number of travellers.
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The Lisbon airport has a huge problem on their hands with drastically underestimating how long these new biometrics are taking. We allowed 3 hours before our flight today, April 2, and the majority of that time was spent in the passport control line. We expressed our concerns to 4 different airport employees that we would miss our flight. Every single one said we would not miss our flight and one in particular told us the line would only be 30 minutes. The line was nearly 2 hours, we missed our flight along with 3 other families, who all also arrived 3 hours prior to the flight time. Our airline graciously rebooked out flights to tomorrow, telling us that this is a huge problem for the airlines. We then we had to spend an additional 3 hours in the passport control lines to return to the city of Lisbon, we recognized many people in that line from our passport line in the morning, I think dozens of families missed their flights today. The people waiting the longest were people who have children under the age of 16. There were fewer employees in the afternoon. They were giving conflicting information, but generally antagonistic with an attitude that it was our fault. By the time we left the airport we had been there for 7 hours. When we left the passport control line I estimate that the newest arrivals probably had to wait 4 hours or more to get through passport control into the city. Tomorrow is a holiday. We plan to get to the airport 5 hours prior to our flight time and never ever fly through the Lisbon airport again.
By C Perry from USA on 02 Apr 2026, 19:35