On Monday, June 26, 2023, there were longer waiting times at the passport controls at Brussels Airport. Travelers who wanted to leave the Schengen area or who arrived outside this region were affected.

Some passengers vented their frustration on social media because the waiting time was more than four hours at one point. Many departing passengers are said to have missed their flights as a result. However, these are likely to have very bad cards in terms of compensation, because the European Court of Justice determined some time ago that sovereign identity checks are not the responsibility of airlines and travelers must expect waiting times here.

Absurd: Many airlines only open the baggage drop-off and check-in counters three to two hours before the scheduled departure. Even if you had reported there in good time, it would have been almost impossible to reach the gate in time with a waiting time of more than four hours before exit control by the Belgian police. Some carriers accepted delays and waited for their passengers, but others took off with (nearly) empty planes to avoid disrupting their schedules.

People who arrived in Belgium from non-Schengen destinations or who switched to Schengen flights here were also affected by long waiting times. In social media you can read, among other things, that you should have stood for three hours or more in front of the supposedly only open counter.

In a statement, Brussels Airport points out that it has no influence on the passport controls carried out by the police. However, one is by no means happy with what happened and freezes on personnel problems in the executive branch.