Spain’s Interior Ministry has confirmed that British TIE holders are exempt from the EU’s new Entry/Exit System.
It comes after the ministry previously told this paper that all Brits must use the biometric scanners at ports and airports, regardless of whether they hold a residency card.
However, after repeated requests for clarification by the Spanish Eye, and reports of conflicting policies at Malaga and Alicante airports, the ministry has performed a U-turn.
It told the Spanish Eye today: ‘We apologise for the confusion.
‘UK nationals and their family members who are beneficiaries of the Withdrawal Agreement will be exempt from EES registration if they hold a specific residence document, such as the TIE.’
It advised any British resident of Spain that the correct rules regarding EES can be found at travel-europe.europa.eu.
The Policia Nacional in Malaga has also backed this up, confirming that if you hold a TIE card, you must use the EU queue.
The force told the Spanish Eye: ‘UK citizens with a Residence Permit and therefore a Foreigner Identity Card (TIE) can use the queues designated for EU citizens.
‘However, these queues are managed by AENA (Spanish Airports and Air Navigation) staff, not the National Police, which could lead to confusion or disruption.
‘UK passengers meeting the aforementioned conditions should be aware of this in order to proceed to the correct queue and avoid procedures that could generate errors in the European Entry/Exit System, which, as you may know, began operating at Malaga-Costa del Sol Airport on October 20, 2025.’
They added: ‘Officials at the aforementioned airport have confirmed that they have contacted the various consulates to provide them with information regarding the updates to the Entry and Exit System (EES).’
The clarification will be welcome news to British residents in Spain, who have been left in the dark since the EES began be phased in on October 12.
Dozens have reported being forced to register on the EES, despite showing airport staff their TIE cards.
Under the EES, anyone from a non-Schengen or ‘third country’ – including the UK – must use biometric scanners upon entering and exiting the EU to keep track of the number of days they have spent in the bloc (ensuring they don’t exceed their 90 in 180 day limit).
As the system has just begun, Brits and others are using the machines for the first time, and are having to register their fingerprints and face scans, leading to delays when they are up and running at peak times.
We experienced confusion at malaga on route to Gatwick. We were ordered to register at a booth and then directed along the path to a manual border guard. I stopped him as he was about to stamp my passport and presented my tie. He became angry that I was at the booth and told us that we shouldn’t be in that queue. We tried to explain that we were directed to him but that didn’t calm him. Hopefully our registration won’t mess up future travelling.