Czech Republic construction adds 60 minutes to Prague Airport border lines

Czech Republic overhauls Prague Airport border checks through April

Non-Schengen arrivals landing at Prague's Václav Havel Airport face potential passport control delays as a seven-month modernization project gets underway in Terminal 1.

Construction cuts arrivals capacity through April

Prague Airport and the Police of the Czech Republic started work in early Sept. 2026 on a CZK 290 million ($12.5 million) overhaul of the arrivals border zone. The project runs until the end of April 2027, adding five passport-control booths and four EasyGoGate e-gates to expand long-term processing capacity.

During the phased works, contractors will temporarily close up to three passport desks at a time and reroute pedestrian corridors. Schengen arrivals at Terminal 2 remain unaffected, but non-Schengen travelers arriving from destinations such as the U.K., the U.S. and Canada will encounter narrower waiting zones and longer lines during peak landing windows.

EES processing compounds wait times

The construction overlaps with active biometric processing under the European Union Entry/Exit System, which took effect across Czech external checkpoints on April 10, 2026. Non-EU travelers entering Czechia for the first time must submit four fingerprints and a facial scan at manual border booths, slowing clearance times per passenger.

Remote workers planning itineraries through the Czech Republic guide should budget at least 45 to 60 extra minutes for border clearance before booking connecting trains or regional buses out of Prague. Eligible departing travelers from the U.K., Japan, Taiwan and South Korea can still access automated e-gates when exiting Schengen, but arrivals must queue for manned booths while renovations continue.