Travelling from home to Dubai airport set to be a breeze

You board an electric car to the Dubai International Airport, and by the time you get there, all your travel formalities are done and you head straight to your flight's boarding gate.

It reads like a scene straight out of a Hollywood sci-fi movie, but as you are reading this, the General Directorate of Residency and Foreigners Affairs (GDRFA) Dubai is working to make the project a reality.

A camera inside the car uses facial recognition to send all relevant data to smart immigration gates. The boarding pass will be sent directly to the counter, and the traveller can go straight to the boarding gate.

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Known as Dubai 10X, this is just one of many projects the directorate is working on to make travelling a breeze. Another project - which has been implemented on a limited basis - lets travellers zoom through immigration checks without the need to even take out their passports. All they need is the Smart UAE wallet app installed on their phones.

Captain Amer Rashed Almheiri, director of the smart application department, GDRFA, said the app has all relevant details, including passport and smart gate card data, of the traveller.

A current project being implemented by the GDRFA on a limited basis is the next generation smart gate, which will gradually replace the existing e-gates and need for physical identification documents for travellers going in and out of Dubai.

Capt Amer Rashed Almheiri said the departure and arrival check will be done in less than 15 seconds by using the Smart UAE Wallet, an app which contains all the passport details and smart gate card data of the traveller.

The smart wallet, which is available to download for free on iTunes and Google Play, was launched in May this year and has resulted in smoother traveller flow through various check-points at the airport, Almheiri said.

Three projects to make travelling smooth and stress-free

All travel checks inside your car

Step into a Tesla car outside your home

A camera inside the car uses facial recognition to capture your data

Passport details are scanned and boarding pass sent to the counter

The system is connected to the smart immigration gates at the check-in areas

A weighing scale and scanner at the boot of the car weighs and scans bags

Traveller goes straight to the lounge and the boarding gate

Your phone is your passport

A next generation smart gate will gradually replace the existing e-gates

Download the Smart UAE Wallet app, which contains all your passport details and smart gate card data

Scan your finger and it's all over

Use barcode on the app to open smart gates

Finish immigrations checks in 15 seconds

A smart tunnel system uses facial and iris recognition technology

Stand in front of the tunnel for your turn

Walk through it for facial recognition and body scanning

Exit the tunnel in a few seconds without the need for passport control or immigration check