UK and France boost border staff to ease EES travel delays

Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander and French transport minister Philippe Tabarot have agreed to increase staffing at key border control points – Dover, Folkestone and London St Pancras – to alleviate queues caused by the EU Entry/Exit System (EES). The EES, fully operational in April 2026, requires non‑EU travellers to provide fingerprints, facial scans and passport data.

The UK has earmarked £20 million in new funding, on top of the £10.5 million already spent on additional passport‑check booths at Dover, the Eurotunnel and Eurostar terminals. French police are set to send more officers to work on UK soil to help process vehicles and passengers while new biometric kiosks are installed.

Officials expect a 50 % rise in traffic this summer, with up to 12,000 cars a day passing through Dover, and warn that without the extra resources “queues could reach hours‑long” and pose safety risks. EU transport commissioner Apostolos Tzitzikostas has pledged constructive cooperation to keep travel as seamless as possible during the peak holiday period. Alexander said, “Everyone deserves to enjoy their summer holiday without delays.”