Beginning in 2024, officials say Singapore’s Changi Airport will introduce automated immigration clearance, which will allow passengers to depart the city-state without passports, using only biometric data.
As per a declaration by the Communications Minister Josephine Teo, Singapore will be one of the first few countries in the world to introduce automated, passport-free immigration clearance. A few changes to the country’s Migration Act were also passed.
Biometric technology, alongside facial recognition software, is as of now being used in Changi Airport at computerized lanes at migration designated spots.
However, upcoming changes will lessen the need for passengers to repeatedly present their travel documents at touch points and allow for more seamless and convenient processing.
Biometrics will be used to create a “single token of authentication” that will be employed at various automated touch points – from bag drops to immigration clearance and boarding – pushing away the need for physical travel documents like boarding passes and passports.
However, international IDs will in any case be expected for some countries beyond Singapore that don’t offer identification free clearance, authorities say.
Frequently positioned the world’s best airport and also one of the most active, Singapore’s Changi Air terminal serves in excess of 100 airlines that fly to 400 cities in around 100 nations and domains around the world.
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It took care of 5.12 million passenger movement in June, crossing the 5 million mark interestingly since January 2020, when the Coronavirus pandemic struck.
The airport is a destination in itself and as of now has four terminals. It is preparing to extend, adding a fifth to take special care of the growing number of travellers.
Changi Airport is projecting a return to pre-pandemic levels of passenger and air traffic and expressed hopes that the upcoming biometric system will help make passenger flows smoother.
“Our immigration systems must be able to manage this high and growing volume of travelers efficiently and provide a positive clearance experience, while ensuring our security,” Teo added.
In 2018, Dubai International Airport introduced biometric “Smart Gates” tunnels, which use facial recognition to verify travelers’ identities in as little as five seconds. Travelers are additionally permitted to use their fingerprints or face checks for verification, as opposed to depend on physical passports.
In some parts of the world, facial recognition technology is already in use to some extent at Hong Kong International Airport, Tokyo Narita, Tokyo Haneda, Indira Gandhi International in Delhi, London Heathrow and Paris Charles de Gaulle, among other airports.
Digital IDs, compliant with International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) standards in Aruba, allow travelers to travel using secure digital versions of their passports on mobile phones.
Meanwhile, major airlines like American Airlines, United and Delta have been experimenting with biometric check-in, bag drops and boarding gates at select airports for the last couple of years.
CNN
