Smart gates at all UAE airports next year
Staff Report
DUBAI – New smart gates at the Dubai International Airport are a welcome change and authorities are working to install them at all UAE airports by next year, including 28 more in Terminal 3 at the Dubai Airport to speed up travellers’ entry or exit process.
Unlike e-gates, smart gates allow travellers to enter or exit the airport without needing to stop at the passport control section. Smart gate users also do not need to undergo prior registration with the General Directorate of Residency and Foreigners Affairs in Dubai.
The smart gate technology uses biometrics, fingerprints, iris and facial recognition. To use the smart gate, travellers need one of the following: an e-passport, identity card, Emirates’ gate card or smart phone application. Each transaction is expected to take 20 seconds. A usual transaction through the passport control section takes about an hour.
There are currently 100 e-gates at the airports and these will be upgraded to allow the identification of passengers by getting their biometrical scan once they walk in.
Passengers with passports that do not have e-readable bar codes can proceed to existing e-Gates or immigration counters.
