As of this present time, cities of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) can use their government issued ID cards to enter through automated gates at Terminal 3 within the Dubai International Airport. Initiated by the General Directorate of Residency and Foreigners Affairs-Dubai (GDRFA-Dubai), this step was taken in cooperation with the Emirates Identity Authority. This allows UAE residents the ability to use their ID cards without needing to register for the system that is used for processing. (FindBiometrics.com)
What Prompted the New Screening Process for ID Cards?
All of this was initiated in response to last year’s announcement from the Ministry of Interior which declared the intention of government authorities to launch a biometric screening process in airports across the country. Additionally, the announcement stated that the UAE authorities planned to collect fingerprint data from citizens to aid in the process as well as implementing the additional step of iris scanning to non-residents.
According to the deputy director of GDRFA-Dubai, the overall goal is to make air travel more convenient for UAE citizens. The plan is to extend these processes to more airport terminals at a future date.
