Britons travelling to Spain’s Tenerife have found themselves waiting for long periods of time to undergo passport checks at Tenerife Sur Airport.
While citizens of European Union countries are able to pass without any inconvenience, Brits have raised concerns and complained about the long queues, calling on the authorities to take measures on the matter, SchengenVisaInfo.com reports.
Due to Brexit, Brits are now considered as nationals of third countries. This means that they need to undergo passport controls before being allowed to enter any EU Member State, including Spain.
Even though Brits have already come to terms with the procedures, concerns continue to remain about the long waiting lines.
Alarmed about the situation that has been prevailing since the UK officially left the EU, travel bosses have said that long queues have been affecting hundreds of thousands of Brits, the Mirror notes.
Moreover, travel bosses also said that there had been long waiting times at the Tenerife Sur Airport for months now, with the Vice president of Ashotel calling the blockage in controls for non-EU passengers “nonsense”.
Spain is one of the most sought-after destinations by Brits, with a large number of them visiting the country every year. Apart from Tenerife, which is one of the most preferred Spanish destinations, Brits prefer others too. However, they face the same difficulties once they arrive at controls.
Due to difficulties faced when travelling to the EU, Brits are increasingly regretting their decision to leave the bloc.
Despite Prime Minister Rishi Sunak saying that Brexit has brought many benefits to the UK, more than half of the population have disagreed, saying that they would vote to remain in the EU.
Results from a YouGov survey showed some months ago that if the referendum were to be held again, around 55 per cent of Brits would vote in favour of remaining in the bloc. On the other hand, only 31 per cent said that they would vote to stay out.
Additionally, data from the survey has shown that the interest to remain in the EU has increased.
According to the OECD, leaving the EU has had some severe impact on the British economy, with the GDP growth decreasing by 0.4 per cent since 2019.
While Brits continue to face long waiting times when entering the EU, the process of travelling is expected to change with the introduction of the Entry/Exit System.
Once the Entry/Exit System becomes operational, travellers from the UK and those from other countries entering the EU will not be subject to long waiting periods, as manual passport stamping will no longer be necessary.