The DUB Passport/Immigration Queue Thread

20-05-2017 7:38pm #1

Would anyone know if anything is being done to solve the issues at Terminal one passport control ? Extremely long queues for passengers arriving in the evenings. An hour or more seems to be the new normal now.

There seems to be a real problem with the number of inbound flights after 10 and not having enough passport control staff to cope with the numbers. For some reason Terminal two is not affected and it never takes more than five minutes to get through there. I see in T1 they are scanning the passport through a scanner machine now so I think that is what is also slowing it all down.

I'm kind of surprised Ryanair haven't been on going bonkers about this as it's really affecting their passengers rather than anyone elses. Any of their evening flights arriving later than 10 are going to be caught up in these massive queues. After being caught up in the long queues a couple of times I'd really think twice before I'd book a T1 evening arriving flight again. Regardless of the price I'd now pay the extra to go Aer Lingus through T2 just to avoid that.

We're not even into the peak summer holiday season so I don't know what it is going to be like come July or august.

I can think of a few ways to improve the system myself - separate the UK \ common travel area arriving passengers like they do at Gatwick where people show their boarding card to confirm they are traveling from the UK. Or loads more of the automatic scanner gates.

Dardania · 20-05-2017 7:47pm

Can't believe this is still going on...very poor service

Is there an airside connection from T1 to T2, so you can use it's passport control queue? Maybe ny following the Dubhub signage?

fullstop · 20-05-2017 7:50pm

It's not much better in terminal 2. Arrived on a morning flight there on Tuesday at 9am and the queue was half way down to the end of the terminal.

Corca Baiscinn · 20-05-2017 7:55pm

Dardania wrote: »

Can't believe this is still going on...very poor service

Is there an airside connection from T1 to T2, so you can use it's passport control queue? Maybe ny following the Dubhub signage?

I travelled into T1 on a late fight on a Bank Hol W/E and I thought that the passport delay was down to a staff shortage. I felt embarrassed for the first impression, all the visitors some with young children, were getting but assumed it was a once off. A few weeks later I saw a post on Boards about the same problem and now today again. As the OP says we're not even at peak holiday season. I haven't seen any publicity outside of Boards whereas sometimes a flight cancellation and delayed passengers makes headlines. Ryanair are vocal enough most of the time but I suppose by the time the passenger is delayed at passport control Ryanair has long since had its money.

Redsoxfan · 20-05-2017 8:03pm

Arrived in T1 on a Tuesday morning at around 9.30. 5 minute wait time for EU passports on digital display on way in. Not even close.

martinsvi · 20-05-2017 8:04pm

I've been stuck in these queues myself lately, I don't understand whatever happened to the self service machines? How come they're working fine across the UK, yet in Dublin it's somehow a problem..

Red Alert · 20-05-2017 8:06pm

I can't imagine moving from Gardai to civilian staff has helped.

theteal · 20-05-2017 8:09pm

I've read about similar issues on here a while ago so I've been expecting trouble on my semi-regular jaunts back.

I've still never had an issue. We've had 3 trips back to Dublin in the last 2 months. All Thursday nights after 10pm. Never more than a couple of minutes each time - thankfully, as I now travel with a baby buggy.

Just lucky?

rizzodun · 20-05-2017 8:10pm

Came in on a late fight from Frankfurt last week, and while the wait wasn't as long an hour, having the guy at the desk ask everyone where they were after travelling from was slowing everything down dramatically, especially as the whole queue was from the one flight, if he did a bit of checking he would've known this, but hearing "Frankfurt" for the 20th consecutive time should have made him realise...

Non-EU passport holders were left waiting the whole time I queued, in 20 minutes not one person had made it through.

Draco · 20-05-2017 8:11pm

The delay seems to be entirely down to the scanning of passports. I do at least 2 flights a month and the difference in queuing times only started after the scanning. They really need to up the staff numbers.

20-05-2017 8:12pm

Let's put some perspective on this, it's NOT just a Dublin problem I have arrived into Heathrow, JFK, Boston, Montreal, Toronto, Orlando among many and had at least an Hour wait to be processed. I don't disagree that queues are long but you have to remember that the people processing the passengers are doing their job, it will always slow up if one or two have issues with people or their IDs.

Yes all booths should be open when known large volumes of passengers are expected that's unforgivable if not done.

martinsvi · 20-05-2017 8:15pm

rizzodun wrote: »

Came in on a late fight from Frankfurt last week, and while the wait wasn't as long an hour, having the guy at the desk ask everyone where they were after travelling from was slowing everything down dramatically, especially as the whole queue was from the one flight, if he did a bit of checking he would've known this, but hearing "Frankfurt" for the 20th consecutive time should have made him realise...

Non-EU passport holders were left waiting the whole time I queued, in 20 minutes not one person had made it through.

Exactly.. like why the hell does it matter where I'm travelling from? EU passport holders are being asked where they live, what they do for a living.. seriously.. it's a pain to watch. AFAIK EU citizens are allowed to move freely and they don't have to explain themselves.

BlinkingLights · 20-05-2017 8:15pm

I waited 38 minutes in CDG in Paris recently.

They would want to be careful they aren't in breech of EU treaties in Dublin. You can't interrogate EU passengers crossing an internal border, Schengen or not. We don't have that on the continent.

martinsvi · 20-05-2017 8:17pm

Deleted User wrote: »

Let's put some perspective on this, it's NOT just a Dublin problem I have arrived into Heathrow, JFK, Boston, Montreal, Toronto, Orlando among many and had at least an Hour wait to be processed. I don't disagree that queues are long but you have to remember that the people processing the passengers are doing their job, it will always slow up if one or two have issues with people or their IDs.

Yes all booths should be open when known large volumes of passengers are expected that's unforgivable if not done.

when I've been stuck there's barely 1/2 of the booths opened, queues all the way up the stairs in T1

ED E · 20-05-2017 8:51pm

Draco wrote: »

The delay seems to be entirely down to the scanning of passports. I do at least 2 flights a month and the difference in queuing times only started after the scanning. They really need to up the staff numbers.

Are they scanning them? Came back through T1 8wks ago, flashed my passport card and through, no delay. Far side always scan it (inside the EU).

Einstein A. Gogo · 20-05-2017 9:03pm

The problem is that they insist on checking all passports from the UK which is totally unnecessary given it's the common travel area and passports are rarely checked in the UK for arrivals from Ireland. If they took this out of the equation it'd greatly speed up passport control in Dublin. Simples!

micosoft · 20-05-2017 9:26pm

Dublin Airport does not segregate passengers enough to let those coming from UK straight through. Most UK airports have a channel that segregates those coming from Ireland.

In any case, I've seen the response from the Airport and the Gardai which is pure fiction - the boothes are not all open when there is queuing. More frustratingly is the idea that they are sometimes overwhelmed when arrivals are entirely predictable.

IMHO we need:
1. Decent Fast pass electronic gate for holders of Credit Card Passports/BioMetric.
2. Civilian or dedicated immigration officers - we don't need expensive Gardai checking a picture and a passport (with an electronic Y/N). Have a second screening where questions need to be asked.

The Rape of Lucretia · 20-05-2017 9:36pm

Deleted User wrote: »

I don't disagree that queues are long but you have to remember that the people processing the passengers are doing their job, it will always slow up if one or two have issues with people or their IDs.

It is bad. Those who are there are doing their job alright. Its that there arent enough is the problem.
Late in the evening, its almost like they are shutting up for the day and surprised that there are still planes landing. Bad scheduling, management, or industrial relations.

Mind you, all French airport are cack for passport queues these days, including the obligatory passport check to board. To be fair to Dublin, far worse than Dublin.

john boye · 20-05-2017 9:36pm

The checks seem to have become more stringent this year (and consequently more time consuming) ever since the EI People smuggling controversy. Don't know if it's related but they use to just glance at your passport and wave you through

Spanish Eyes · 20-05-2017 9:53pm

Inefficient management. Pay them overtime or whatever is required, get it sorted.

We need tourists more than ever and visitors/business from UK, that has declined recently.

Typical Ireland, don't do anything even if the crisis is staring you in the face until there is an outcry. Leo V will sort it out though!

I don't care about other airports around the world, I care about Dublin Airport and its immigration queues. Totally unacceptable to have to wait an hour to enter your own country!

Gives a very bad impression to everyone arriving, and can be sorted quite simply.... more staff, plan for mass concurrent arrivals. I can see the arrivals board on the app/website, so I am sure the immigration managers can also see this and plan for it? Obviously not.

uck51js9zml2yt · 20-05-2017 9:57pm

Came into T2 on a domestic flight and still had to go through passport control. It's mad Ted!

LXFlyer · 20-05-2017 10:12pm

Einstein A. Gogo wrote: »

The problem is that they insist on checking all passports from the UK which is totally unnecessary given it's the common travel area and passports are rarely checked in the UK for arrivals from Ireland. If they took this out of the equation it'd greatly speed up passport control in Dublin. Simples!

I'm not in any way excusing the delays but just to clarify something.

The common travel area only applies to people born in Ireland and U.K. - everyone else is still obliged to have a passport.

There aren't common Ireland and U.K. visas except for a very small number of people.

wordofwarning · 20-05-2017 11:04pm

rizzodun wrote: »

Came in on a late fight from Frankfurt last week, and while the wait wasn't as long an hour, having the guy at the desk ask everyone where they were after travelling from was slowing everything down dramatically, especially as the whole queue was from the one flight, if he did a bit of checking he would've known this, but hearing "Frankfurt" for the 20th consecutive time should have made him realise...

I had this before. I got asked where I was flying from? How long was I there? Where I am from in Ireland? I got handed back my passport when I said "Dublin obviously". I got told with that attitude, it is clear you are from Dublin

They really know how to pick the crowd working the passport control desks now...

I have flown Dublin to Spain and Germany etc. Where the passport control guys have waved us on. Yet Irish citizens returning home from a weekend in Berlin with an Irish passport need to be asked mind numbing questions from a bureaucrat. I have European friends who all agree that passport control in Dublin is a nightmare between the long queues and the dumb questions

Like why are flights from the UK segregated and immediately bypassed passport control?

The Veteran · 20-05-2017 11:43pm

Do any of the posters on here know what the 'capacity' of an immigration booth is per hour?

Do any of the posters know how many desks\booths there are in the Terminal 1 area that the ryanair flights go into?

Do any of the posters know how many flights\passengers there are at different times of the day?

There are 10 desks\booths - count them. The time posters are referring to can see over twenty flights in an hour. Flights arrive in 'waves' and within that flights can be delayed or early causing congestion. If the infrastructure (supplied by the Port Authority) is not in place - no amount of staff will solve it. The number of arriving passengers in the period referenced, exceeds the processing capacity of the attached immigration desks\booths. The only solution is a bigger Hall; a better laid out Hall and more desks - all of these issues are for the Port Authority.

After that passengers need to understand that they are crossing a border and are subject to controls. Officers don't know who the passengers are - Irish people don't have a radar signal that confirms their nationality; they are in a mixed flow of passengers with people coming from everywhere. Try the recently tightened Schengen exit controls - lots of missed flights I am hearing.

EU Free movement is respected but that does not mean no controls.

If posters want to know what's what, why not ask the immigration service and daa directly. Contact INIS Customer Servixe and ask; also email customer experience@daa.ie and ask.

plodder · 21-05-2017 12:10am

lxflyer wrote: »

I'm not in any way excusing the delays but just to clarify something.

The common travel area only applies to people born in Ireland and U.K. - everyone else is still obliged to have a passport.

There aren't common Ireland and U.K. visas except for a very small number of people.

But, the UK seems to treat it as a true common travel area, with no restrictions. Why do we treat it differently? I think a one hour wait is completely unacceptable, though I have never experienced a delay anywhere near as long as that.

eeguy · 21-05-2017 12:19am

Spanish Eyes wrote: »

Inefficient management. Pay them overtime or whatever is required, get it sorted.

Gives a very bad impression to everyone arriving, and can be sorted quite simply.... more staff, plan for mass concurrent arrivals. I can see the arrivals board on the app/website, so I am sure the immigration managers can also see this and plan for it? Obviously not.

There's your problem.

Waves of people coming to passport control. No sense having a full staff level if they're only doing 10 minutes of work, then 20 minutes of hanging around waiting for the next wave.
If that was the case, people would be giving out even more.

IMO they need a separate queue for the automated passport scanners and more of them. Put 20 scanners in. Pain in the hole when you see people ahead not using the scanners and just waiting for the guy in the window.

Doltanian · 21-05-2017 12:23am

There should be three channels, Irish and UK passports, EU and Foreign. Priority should be given to Irish and UK as per the CTA, let the rest wait as is done in most other airports around the world.

Stephen15 · 21-05-2017 12:26am

I was in Italy there recently and had to queue for about an hour and a half as passport control didn't have a scanning machine and had to type in information manually. Riddiculous

Dingle_berry · 21-05-2017 12:51am

Landed in T1 Dublin twice last month, one morning weekday, one late weekend. Both times queued for booth to have card scanned and to be questioned. The biometric scanners were gated off and not being used at all.
Yet entering Australia as a visitor with an e visa I could use the biometric scanners and never had to speak to an official. No queuing.

Blue House Bear · 21-05-2017 2:23am

Just what I want. Queue to get back into my own country!!!! DAA blame GNIB. They do nothing!

Atlantic Dawn · 21-05-2017 2:31am

If only the scheduling of planes would be known weeks/months in advance of how many planes would arrive at x time, if only. Keystone cops again, joke of a place.

The DUB Passport/Immigration Queue Thread

Comments