FORGETTING your passport when travelling to the airport may soon be a thing of the past, as the first digital passport is being tested.
The new technology would only require a mobile phone, removing the need for the travel documents.
Called the “Known Traveller Digital Identity,” it has been suggested by the World Economic Forum.
The trial will first take place between Canada and the Netherlands later this year, and is hoped to roll out officially in 2020, according to Reuters.
Air Canada and KLM flights to and from Montréal-Trudeau International Airport, Toronto Pearson Airport and Amsterdam Airport Schiphol will be part of the test-run.
Passengers will be able to use their mobile phone with an encrypted information file to replace the chip in the passport.
This will then be used through airport security and border control alongside fingerprints and facial recognition.
It is hoped that it will speed up arrivals and departures at airports as well as reduce identity fraud.
It works by building a Known Traveller Status over time, according to the report.
The traveller shares their own bio-metric and biographic information in the application, as well as requesting attestations such as bank statements or university degrees.
Visa applications can also be then added.
At the airport the traveller would head to a Known Traveller lane which will be quicker than normal security queues.
A Known Traveller Digital Identity would update after every place that is travelled to, sharing the information each time.
Arne M. Sorenson, President and Chief Executive Officer at Marriott International, explained: “Technology has drastically changed most aspects of our daily lives yet international travel and the framework of policies that enable it largely look the same as they did 50 years ago.
“Collaboration with industry partners and customers is needed to construct a new framework to pre-vet legitimate, low-risk travellers.
“In turn, government agencies can devote more resources to true threats, improving secure and seamless travel, which will allow more people to see the world.”
Other new technology to be rolled out at airports includes CT scanners which allow travellers to keep their liquids in their suitcases.
Heathrow Airport hopes to roll them out by 2022.
However, Brits who want to get through security quicker should always go left, according to experts.
