To provide a fluid handling system which maintains liquid in a space between a final element and a substrate of a projection system.

A fluid handling structure has a plurality of openings acting as a meniscus pinning system operating on a gas drag principle and a gas knife outside of the meniscus pinning system to break up any film of liquid left behind. The separation between the gas knife and the meniscus pinning system is selected from the range of 1 mm to 5 mm. Desirably, the underside of a barrier member in which the gas knife and the meniscus pinning system are provided is continuous, e.g. has no openings, between the gas knife and the meniscus pinning system.