A £1 million investment in the immigration control area at Belfast International has increased capacity by 50%, the airport has said.
The expansion by airport owner Vinci was completed in collaboration with UK Border Force, who staff the check point for international arrivals.
The capacity of the passport check has come under pressure at peak periods for the airport, creating long queues for arriving passengers.
Dan Owens, who recently took over from Graham Keddie as chief executive of Belfast International Airport said the work will improve the time it takes to process passengers.
“We fully understand that at peak times passengers were queuing for longer than we would like and this investment will ensure that passenger flow is improved and queuing times are reduced,” he said.
“This project is just a small part of our £100m investment plan to upgrade airport facilities and enhance the overall passenger experience over the coming years.”
Ballymena firm Martin & Hamilton was the main contractor on the project, which is now complete.
The airport is also progressing a £25m investment to expand its security area for processing departing passengers.
It’s understood around £6m has been spent on new 3D scanners from UK security tech firm Smiths Detection.
The technology will mean passengers being able to leave liquids and electrical devices in their in-flight bags for security checks.
The UK Government had set a deadline for airports to have the scanners in place by June 1 2024.
However, that deadline has been relaxed for a number of major UK airports.
Belfast International Airport said it was unable to provide a timeline for the installation of its new security scanners, but said they should be operational by this summer.