Shorter wait times on entry? Prague Airport upgrades passport control

Passengers arriving at Prague Airport through Terminal 1 will see more passport-control capacity under a CZK 290 million modernization project starting this month.

Five new passport-control booths and four EasyGoGate self-service gates will be added to the arrivals area, while the space available for passengers waiting to clear the Czech border will also be expanded. Work is scheduled to run from the first half of September through the end of April 2027.

The airport says the changes should ultimately reduce waiting times, particularly during peak periods. In the meantime, however, passengers have been warned that temporary restrictions during construction could lead to queues.

Terminal 1 handles flights arriving from outside the Schengen Area, meaning passengers generally need to pass through border control before entering Czechia. Prague Airport says pressure on the existing facilities has become increasingly apparent since the EU's Entry/Exit System, or EES, was introduced last October.

"By expanding border control, we are responding to the growing pressure on capacity," Prague Airport board member Martin Kučera said. He added that the additional booths and self-service gates should allow the airport to handle peak periods more effectively.

Along with the five staffed passport booths, four new EasyGoGates will be supplied and installed by Czech police. The automated gates allow eligible European passport holders to clear border control electronically.

The project also includes a larger passenger waiting area and modernization of the ventilation system throughout the passport-control zone. The CZK 290 million investment covers construction as well as engineering, design, technical supervision and health and safety coordination.

Police say the redesigned area has been planned to comply with security and legal requirements for protecting the Schengen Area's external border.

Construction will be carried out in stages so that passport control can continue operating throughout the project, but the airport says some disruption will be unavoidable.

At one point, three passport-control booths will need to close temporarily. The airport plans to schedule that phase for a period with lower passenger traffic and fewer arrivals from outside the Schengen Area.

During other stages, construction should primarily affect the waiting area rather than the border-control booths themselves. Passenger routes will be adjusted around sections where work is taking place.

EU citizens are exempt from EES registration and will continue to be able to proceed directly to passport-control desks or eligible EasyGoGates during the renovation.

Airport staff will also manage queues and redirect passengers depending on conditions, but Prague Airport cautions that temporary waiting times may still increase while work is underway.

Once completed next spring, the expanded facility should provide nine additional processing points as Prague Airport works to accommodate growing passenger numbers and the additional demands of Europe's new border-control system.