Impact of Stringent EU checks on Portsmouth International Port revealed amid Dover bank holiday delay warnings
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The port director detailed the situation regarding EU entry/exit system checks
No delays are expected for passengers travelling through Portsmouth International Port relating to new EU checks this bank holiday.
Ferry passengers travelling through the Port of Dover were warned to expect long queues and possible delays amid EU entry and exit system (EES) border checks. The port is preparing for 18,000 travellers between Friday and Sunday, and warned that the busiest periods each day will be between 6am and about 1pm.
This is not expected to be the case for Portsmouth. Port director Mike Sellers said: “There will be no additional impacts at Portsmouth International Port due to the EU’s Entry/Exit System checks. Dover has the status of juxtaposed port, meaning the EU’s border checks are done for passengers on arrival at Dover before they sail, but at Portsmouth and elsewhere, EU border checks are carried out on the other side of the Channel, at our destination ports after passengers have sailed.”
EES involves people from third-party countries such as the UK having their fingerprints registered and photograph taken to enter the Schengen Area, which consists of 29 European countries, mainly in the EU. Several Brittany Ferries sailings are scheduled from Portsmouth to destinations such as St Malo.
A spokesperson for the company said there will be no problems for passengers going through Portsmouth, but it would take a little longer for passengers to go through processes once they arrive in France or Spain. Biometric checks for passengers have been delayed until September at the earliest.
The spokesperson added that Brittany Ferries would like to see a “pragmatic approach”, where the EU would allow kiosks on board ship so passengers can do various checks a their leisure during the crossing, rather than in queues while trying to leave the port at the end of their journey. The firm is lobbying for such measures in Paris and Madrid.