The data, accessed by Lusa, also shows that in 2023, when the Foreigners and Borders Service (SEF) ceased operations and the PSP (Public Security Police) took over passenger control at airport borders, 9.7 million people from outside the Schengen Area passed through Lisbon Airport, increasing to 10.6 million in 2024 and, this year, estimates point to a further increase to around 12 million.

According to the data, passengers from outside the Schengen Area – those who do not belong to the European area of ​​free movement of people and goods and who need to go through border control – represented 19% of the total number of people who passed through Lisbon airport in 2021, a percentage that rises to more than 30% in 2025.

In those five years, there has been a large increase in the total number of passengers at Humberto Delgado Airport in Lisbon, which was 12.1 million in 2021 and has already reached 36 million this year.

The increase in passengers needing to go through border control has not been accompanied by an increase in infrastructure.

According to data presented this week by the Minister of Internal Administration in parliament, Lisbon airport has 16 manual control points and 14 'e-gates' (technological gates for biometric reading) in arrivals, and 14 manual points and 14 'e-gates' in departures.

Waiting times

Waiting times at Lisbon airport have been high, with queues reaching six hours, and the new Entry/Exit System (EES) is contributing to this situation, in addition to the increased number of passengers.

The new European border control system for non-EU citizens came into operation on October 12th in Portugal and the remaining Schengen Area countries, and since then, waiting times have worsened, especially at Lisbon airport, with passengers sometimes having to wait for several hours.

This situation led the Government to create an emergency task force at the end of October to manage this crisis.

Since December 10th, the second phase has been underway with the collection of biometric data, which consists of obtaining photographs and fingerprints of passengers, further complicating the situation.

A source connected to the system also told Lusa that the queues at Lisbon airport are a structural problem that already existed when the SEF (Immigration and Borders Service) controlled air borders, with waiting times related to the concentration of flights and passengers at the same time, particularly in the morning.

To address this situation, the Ministry of Internal Administration reinforced Lisbon airport with 80 PSP (Public Security Police) officers for the next 15 days to ensure the regular functioning of border control and security during the peak period.

The minister justified this reinforcement during Christmas and New Year to avoid the “terrible experience” of the queues recorded this week, which, according to Maria Lúcia Amaral, “reached unsustainable proportions”.

The Public Security Police currently has 540 officers at Lisbon airport, 230 of whom are responsible for border control.

Last week, a team from the European Commission was at Lisbon airport to conduct an "unannounced" assessment of security conditions at Portuguese air and sea borders, and the conclusions are unknown at this time.