Border biometrics, advanced authorization present potential $400B global windfall

Border modernization with biometrics and advanced travel authorization is a strategic imperative that could add billions in economic growth and millions of jobs around the world, according to a new report from the World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC) and SITA.

The “Better Borders” report forecasts that adoption of technologies like digital travel credentials and policies in support of eVisas could increase global GDP by $401 billion and generate 14 million new jobs in the G20, the European Union and African Union by 2035. The report outlines six key principles and makes 18 recommendations for governments to realize these gains.

The six principles are evenly divided between visa and electronic travel authorization (ETA) processes and digital technologies to be deployed at borders.

Travellers are ready to embrace the needed technological changes, with three-quarters expressing a preference for biometric identification over manual checks, and 84 percent willing to share information before they travel to make border processes faster. Those figures come from the International Air Transport Association’s (IATA’s) 2024 Global Passenger Survey. Notably, the ratio of travellers who prefer to use biometrics has remained stable since the 2023 survey.

The 2025 Global Passenger Survey has just been released, and shows that 85 percent of those who have used airport biometrics are happy with the experience. One percent more (74 percent) said they would willingly share biometric data to skip showing a passport or boarding pass than last year. The 2025 survey also shows an increased reliance on smartphones for travel processes, but also notes significant disparity in preferences between different geographical regions.

Now arriving: border processing alignment

Biometric border processing could potentially help automatic and efficient visa and travel authorizations expand.

A U.S. Travel Association official says in an editorial the country-wide expansion of the Biometric Entry-Exit program operated by Customs and Border Protection (CBP), effective December 26, affords the opportunity to expand the Visa Waiver Program to new countries. Biometric Exit will make the primary metric by which the program is judged visa overstays, rather than refusals. That could help make the case for extending visa waivers, which have historically boosted visits, to new partner countries.

The article notes that the U.S. system aligns with the EU’s Entry/Exit System (EES), which launched last month amid a public awareness campaign to ensure travellers are ready to use it.

The WTTC and SITA also note that 79 percent of all arrivals to Australia were eligible to use facial recognition for arrivals and departures processes through the country’s SmartGates, and close to 75 percent of them did so. Facial recognition is now expanding at Australia’s international airports with a deployment of 250 biometric cameras from Cognitec.

Article Topics

ABC gates  |  airport biometrics  |  contactless biometrics  |  digital ID  |  digital travel credentials  |  International Air Transport Association  |  passenger processing  |  SITA  |  WTTC