psychopomp1

Hi,
Does anyone know if the smart e-gate passport scanners located at T3 DXB work like the biometric scanners at T5 LHR where you just turn up (ie no pre-registration req'd), scan your passport, look into camera and the gate opens? Do you need to have a UAE residence visa in order to use them or can non-residents use them assuming they have a biometric passport? I'm aware that there are (or used to be) 1st gen e-gates at DXB which you had a pre-register for (fingerprint taken) and then you were given a smartcard but these were only for residents. Can someone clarify?
cheers

mikewot

The former.

busybee2

there are 2 different systems at the mo..... egate which is a card and epassport, i dont know about dxb for registration etc but in auh they were doing this over the summer in various malls.. you have to take your passport and do the registration, this is not the same as the one in uk with the passport and chip where no registration is required just put your passport in and go.... the differences are that epassport is valid from 5 upwards whereby egate was only valid from 18 upwards. epassport is free and egate is paid and you get a card etc. if you want to do the epassport registration unless they do the special registrations at the malls like in auh etc you can request to do this on your "return" to the airport, you cannot do it in advance like egate etc. i believe that anyone can register tho.

busybee2

http://www.emirates247.com/news/emir...06-08-1.509549

mikewot

"The new e-Gate helps to get rid of the need for prior user registration with the GDRFA, which is the case with the existing e-Gate card," said Colonel Al Razooqi.
He said the new system quickly scans and reads passport information and captures biometric data including facial recognition and retinal scans using a high-accuracy camera. The system then matches the traveller's captured biometrics and passport information against existing lists to detect any potential immigration issues.
All these procedures are expected to be completed in 12-14 seconds while maintaining a high level of accuracy and security standards.

All holders of modern passports with barcodes that can be read by the e-reader can use the e-Gate, including children above the age of seven.

Passengers who hold passports without e-readable barcodes can proceed to the existing e-Gates or the conventional immigration counters to complete their entry or exit process.


http://dnrd.ae/en/MediaCenter/news/P...px?NewsId=1117

http://www.wam.ae/servlet/Satellite?...=1135099399948

Robajob

When we went through Abu Dhabi airport at Christmas, the e-gates in the main immigration section had been replaced with smart e-gates, which meant we had to go through the ones in the First Class immigration. Hardly a problem (even shorter queues!) but I can see a point in the not too distant future where all egates are replaced wth the smart e-gates...

csdf

So with the new system, every time you get a new passport you will have to re-register?

busybee2

yes but how long does your passport normally last... longer than using the egate for 2 years!

csdf

My current passport is going to last for about 6 months before it runs out of pages.

NorthernLad

To put it simply, on entering Dubai go to Smart Gate (to right side of passport control), takes around a minute to register.

busybee2

ok but they do last 10 years so its better than a 2 year egate then, so its not worth it if you only have 6 months left now is it... but if you use the egate system whichever then no more stamps in passport using up valuable pages etc.