While the majority of the European airports are still in the process of implementing automated screening systems part of the EES, Lithuania has announced that the EES infrastructure is ready at its airports, Travel Inn News reports.

Revealing the work done so far on the EES at the Lithuanian airports, the Director of Safety and Security Department of Lithuanian Airports, Vidas Kšanas, said that spaces at the airports have been made more convenient for passengers to pass border checks, as self-service terminals and information screens have been set up in each of them.

He also pointed out that the Lithuanian authorities have carefully planned the new areas where additional checks will be carried out and have also modelled the processes for management of passenger flow and passenger convenience.

“Once the screening starts, third-country citizens will not only receive detailed information on the procedures to be followed but will also have the opportunity to perform most of the services completely independently in the self-service terminals,” Director Kšanas said.

The Entry/Exit System is a new security system for travellers created by the EU in a bid of its authorities to keep track of who enters and who leaves the Member States. The system will register everyone who enters and exits the territory of the EU, through new infrastructure that shall be implemented by the Member Countries at their external borders, including here airports and land borders.

The system will collect and verify biometric and personal data, including fingerprints and facial images, of third-country travellers entering the EU for the first time after the start of the implementation of the EES.

The system was previously planned to become effective in May 2023, however, the agency responsible for its management, the eu-LISA has warned that the EES will be postponed to the end of the year due to unreadiness by some third parties.