Singapore airport is going passport-free. Will we follow suit?

Travelling through one of the world's best airports will become even more enticing next year, with passengers departing Singapore's Changi Airport using only their biometric data without the need for passports.

But don't stash it away quite yet, warns Dr David Beirman, senior lecturer in tourism at the University of Technology Sydney. You'll still need it to exit Australia and to register your biometric details at your point of departure, which will then be available to immigration authorities at all points of your journey.

The chief advantages of biometric travel are speed and security, and it seems most of us are on board. International Air Transport Association's (IATA) 2023 Global Passengers Survey found 75 per cent of passengers want to use biometric data instead of passports and boarding passes.

"Biometrics will speed up immigration processing significantly, which is particularly beneficial for frequent and business travellers. It will also weed out those deemed security risks," Beirman tells Explore. "For Singapore this will be a great move to manage the vast volume of travellers who use it as a stopover."

Professor Katina Michael, a specialist in biometrics and emerging technology at the University of Wollongong, tells Explore passport-free gates carry the added bonus of being hygienic. "This is frictionless and touchless technology," she says.

Other airports are already making the switch. Dubai's Terminal 3 has upgraded its smart gates to use facial recognition only. There are similar trials occurring at some airports in the US. Australia is also considering ways to create a more seamless experience, an Australian Border Force spokesperson tells Explore.

"Like Singapore and UAE, Australia is looking at contactless processing using biometrics. This would allow passengers to cross the border at a SmartGate without needing to take their passport out of their pocket."

While technologically advanced countries are expected to be first to go passport-free, others may eventually be forced to follow if and when IATA mandates biometrics as standard. Michael estimates this may take 10 to 15 years. Yet she cautions that the technology may disadvantage some people due to bias in algorithms, resulting in discrimination. "It can call out people for wearing certain apparel, having a certain surname, or displaying certain physical characteristics, such as a temperature, or even behavioural characteristics."

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"Consenting to be watched inevitably goes to the next step: emotional detection. And then we're going into very murky territory."

There are also risks of system failures that necessitate passport backup and data breaches, she adds. "What are you going to do if your iris or fingerprints are taken and nestled with deepfakes? We need to apply the right laws, standards and processes when it comes to biometrics."

The bottom line is, you'll still need your passport as a back-up for quite some time, wherever you're travelling, Beirman adds. "Don't travel without it."