Brits have praised an airport in southern Spain for ‘finally making sense’ of the widely-criticised Entry/Exit System (EES).
The rollout of the EU’s new border control technology, which began on October 12, has been far from plain sailing.
Broken machines and a lack of clarity and training among staff at some airports, including Malaga and Alicante, have caused hours-long queues, with dozens of passengers having missed their flights.
One of the most problematic issues has been the fate of non-Schengen passport holders who are resident in Spain and hold a foreign residency card (TIE).
For weeks, airports gave conflicting statements on whether or not they should join the EU queue and avoid the EES altogether.
The Policia Nacional at Malaga Airport first told the Spanish Eye that TIE holders must never use the EES, or they risk being quizzed or delayed at a further date if they are mistakenly flagged by the system.
The same force in Alicante and the Interior Ministry both contradicted this, telling this paper that all Brits must use the machines, before eventually issuing corrections when we pointed out the legislation that contradicted them on the EU website.
Now, Murcia Airport has sought to clear up all doubts after sticking a paper sign up that directs TIE holders to join the passport queue with EU nationals.
The photo of the makeshift poster, printed out on an A4 sheet of paper and bearing the Union Jack, was shared on Facebook by Danny Brunton.
He wrote: ‘Murcia international airport Departures. One queue for EU and TIE… another for UK passports only.’
The image was met with praised from felllow Brits.
‘Finally a Spanish airport follows Spanish government instructions,’ one wrote.
‘There you go, easy. Now let’s see if this best practice is rolled out on all Spanish airports,’ said another.
