Biometric AI border control launches at Dubai airport – clearing passengers in 3.4 seconds

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Dubai’s busiest airport is testing biometric technology that allows passengers to walk through immigration without stopping to show their passport or boarding pass.

The “red carpet” lane service at Dubai International airport (DXB) reduces terminal transit time by more than 60 per cent, said the General Directorate of Identity and Foreigners Affairs (GDRFA Dubai).

According to GDRFA Dubai, AI biometric cameras can clear up to 10 people simultaneously and see travellers pass through border control in just 3.4 seconds.

Smart Gates featured in the advanced passport control system will “allow guests arriving and departing the airport to pass through passport control swiftly, typically within seconds, thanks to their enhanced features and contactless process”, said DXB.

Those registered need only look at the green light on a biometric camera after removing any face coverings, without scanning a document.

The service initially launched as a trial at Terminal 3 for premium passengers, but is now also available to arrivals after 528,900 people used the Smart Corridor in 2025.

According to GDFRA Dubai, 26.4 million travellers overall used the Smart Gates last year.

UAE and GCC nationals, UAE residents and visa-on-arrival guests with biometric passports are automatically eligible to use the Smart Gates.

The airport is the first major transport hub in the world to trial the system, which uses integrated flight data and artificial intelligence to register passengers.

Travellers are registered to use the gates when entering the passport control touchpoint at DXB. Families with children and people under 1.2m tall are ineligible to use the service.

Prospective holidaymakers can check their passport online to see if they can skip queues using the Smart Gates.

The UK’s Foreign Office (FCDO) lifted its “all but essential travel” advisory for the United Arab Emirates (UAE) on 18 June.

DXB expects to welcome around three million passengers through its terminals in the first half of July.

Paul Griffiths, the chief executive of Dubai Airports, told The Times: “We’ve invested in camera technology, whereby you can continue to walk through a space and be verified as OK to enter or leave the country, so no passports in your hand, no gate readers, no difficulty with the whole process.

“We have to make the security process no less rigorous but far less intrusive.

“It will be rolled out to all passengers. At the moment we’ve trialled it in our first and business class, but we’ve now got the camera technology to roll it out properly.”