Passengers at Faro Airport are now waiting for an all-low record average of minutes at passport control, following the extinguishing of SEF, Portugal’s border authority, which no longer overviews border control at airports.
Since October 29, police forces are the ones responsible for carrying out passport controls at all points of entry and exit in Portugal.
Arriving passengers no longer report frequently cases of chaos at the airport, especially compared to prior measures when some passengers even fell ill due to long waiting times.
Passengers mostly responded positively to SEF no longer controlling passport checks, and on the first day that police took over border control duties, 79 flights and 13,128 passengers underwent checks by evening at the Portuguese airport.
The average waiting time was ten minutes, which is the shortest time since Faro Airport began operating.
The change that has been made has equipped the country to adapt to the needs of international demand with greater security than we had until now because we have many more human resources working in regulation, supervision, and control. All knowledge, experience, and information are now shared and worked on together within the scope of the Internal Security System (SSI) and under the Border and Foreigners Coordination Unit.
There is more good news, as the airport announced the first direct air link between Faro and the United States, which is becoming an important market for the Algarve.
According to Carneiro, there will be more police agents deployed to finish their duties – around 2,500 new agents were also admitted to PSP and GNR police last year, showcasing the seriousness of the authorities to handle passengers and their demands.
The minister also said that another 1,500 will be admitted, with 580 new police officers finishing their training recently and another 500 will enter their training in November.
On the other hand, passengers at Lisbon Airport had a higher average waiting time – 30 minutes, but it was still one-third less than the average waiting time recorded between midnight and 10 a.m.
Carneiro also pointed out that security forces at Portuguese airports are fully operational and cooperating to offer their best service.
Now that SEF is no longer operating tasks regarding border security, it will also stop completing tasks related to the issuance of foreigners’ documents as the new Agency for Integration, Migration and Asylum (AIMA) has been created. AIMA, which is taking on around 300,000 pending immigrant legalisation cases from SEF, will also take over the duties of the High Commissioner for Migration.
