ELECTRONIC PASSPORT MACHINES are coming into service in Dublin Airport today.

Following a trial which ended in April, works have been completed on 20 permanent self-service automated passport control gates. There will be 10 gates in each of the airport’s two terminals.

The gates will electronically check the biometric authenticity of a passport and check that the holder’s facial features match those contained on the passport’s electronic chip. The passenger will be allowed to exit the gate once the machine gives the all clear.

The gates are aimed at speeding up the movement of passengers. A single immigration officer can monitor several e-Gates at the same time, “thus facilitating shorter queuing times”.

Phase one of the project will allow Irish, EU, EEA and Swiss travellers over the age of 18 with electronic passports to use the e-Gates.

Following the first phase, the Irish Naturalisation and Immigration Service (INIS) will examine its scope for extending the e-Gate use to non-EU passport holders, to allow easier entry for regular visitors such as business travellers.

Minister for Justice Charlie Flanagan said the introduction of e-Gates will “greatly enhance our immigration controls, including our border security, while at the same time providing an improved passenger experience through self-service and speedier passage through the immigration process”.

The gates will “provide highly secure automated passport validation and security checks on passengers, by using advanced facial recognition technology and integration with national and international watch lists”.

Additional e-Gates may be installed at Dublin Airport and at other ports of entry, should it make operational and financial sense to do so, according to INIS.

The estimated €3 million contract for the machines was awarded to Lisbon-based Vision Box, who are partnering with Accenture and ESP Global Systems. The contract was awarded following an open EU tender competition, managed by the Office of Government.

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