NEWS FLASH
Belgrade Nikola Tesla Airport has introduced electronic passport gates (eGates) to streamline passenger processing. Initially planned to feature eight eGates each for departing and arriving passengers, the number has been increased to ten per direction, totaling twenty eGates across the airport. According to the Interior Ministry, the service is currently available only to Serbian passport holders aged eighteen and over, with plans to extend its use to foreign nationals in the future.
To ensure a smooth transition, staff will assist passengers in using the eGates over the coming months. The system significantly reduces processing times to just twelve to fifteen seconds per person. The eGates operate via a two-step process: passengers first scan their passports to open the initial gate. A photo is then taken for facial recognition, which opens the second gate, allowing travellers to proceed with their journey.
Good stuff! Zagreb needs these ASAP
ReplyDeleteZagreb is in the Schengen area.
DeleteSo what? You don't think ZAG passengers travel to/from non-Schengen countries? 🤔
DeleteOf course they travel to nonSchengen countries as well. Bravo for Belgrade! :)
DeleteThere are eGates at ZAG before departure security
DeletePassport egates? I believe what you are referring to are boarding pass readers
DeleteYes, correct. Managed to mix those two.
DeleteWhat is happening with the one in Ljubljana???
ReplyDeleteIf it doesn’t work properly it’s useless. Was using it yesterday in Madrid and it took me around 5minutes to go through.
DeleteMajority of e-gates in Spain for croatian passport holders solely do not work for whatever reason. I asked policemen there and they did not know the reason either but were aware of the issue.
DeleteRpelying to 15:02: they don't work in Poland either for Croatian passport holders. They work perfectly in UK, used them many times. I think countries restrict certain member States for whatever reason.
Deleteanonymous19:44 In the eu they work only for schengen countries plus US, UK, Australia, Japan and some other countries
DeleteCroatia is a Schengen country.
DeleteDoes not work for US passports, can comfirm.
DeleteAwesome news! Just in time for Dec/Jan travel peak.
ReplyDeleteAbsolutely! Now it is time for bording-pass gates before entering the passport control area!
DeleteGreat. Will use them on Monday
ReplyDeleteI was tonight at the airport, using e gates. There was one police officer helping people and explaining how to use it. It's fast and efficient, but after that there is small desk with another police officer who put me stamp in the passport!?! It wasn't busy on the airport at that time, but I'm curious how efficient it will be when a lot of people come for that stamp? All border police officers were very polite and helpful.
DeleteThat's actually not that uncommon - I remember at AMS there was somebody stamping passports after you were done with the eGate.
DeleteThe use of eGates doesn't absolve non-Schengen passport holders from requiring an entry/exit stamp. That's the reason why.
DeleteThat's late actually but better late than never
ReplyDeleteDidn’t BEG have automatic passport machines some 5-10 years on arrival?
ReplyDeleteNo. It had one early prototype that barely worked and only worked for some passports issued after a certain date.
DeleteThanks for info. I was not sure was ai dreaming or not.
DeleteYes, BeG had it..But didn't work properly..I used it once, spent much longer time then on police counter, because it kept me to repeat scanning of passport many times..So I gave up going there
DeletePity thing children can't go through so for me it'll be only useful for business trip as will be for most other people
ReplyDeleteAfter few events in Serbia about kidnapping kids, separed parents etc. so 18+ seems as only possible solution. I mean in italy it is from 12+ to use e control
DeleteThanks God this is not allowed for kids..Every parent has to give written approval of allowing her/his kid to leave the country..I could just imagine how many problems from ex- spouses would this possibility of kids using egate cause..Especially in our and similar societies where you can do everything if you have political or financial power or if you know right people...
DeleteApproval is necessary only if neither of the parents is travelling with the child, otherwise it's perfectly fine for father or mother alone to take their child abroad. And if there is a sole custody situation, I am sure that will be flagged in some way in the MUP system - no reason why this should not be reflected on eGates as well. The corruption you are describing would actually work at the counter, while it would not on eGates.
DeleteIf parents are devorced, approval is necessary..For child custody parent as well as the other one..In these cases we experienced most of kidnapping...That anonimuos flagging in MUP system you are proposing would cause the biggest corruption...Only high sentence for police officer with the name ,who works on the counter, and lets this crime to be carried out, would assure that these cases wouldn't happen in large numbers..no no and no for kids usage of egates..
DeleteBe great if it worked for foreign passports for people who are permanent residents.
ReplyDeleteThats how it works in Germany. I use german e-gates with my Serbian passport!
DeleteI hope that they will ensure that the simplest little things about putting these gates into use, will be set right, which are the visibility and space organization (these in Serbia never get done properly with anything for some reason). Is there a separate queue for these gates (not a system where every traveller can pick a gate to go to) that will be properly tagged that it is for adult Serbian citizens only, not groups or families with kids? I don’t see the busy/available high-lamp on these gates, that make it easy to see which one of the 20 is available for waiting travellers (even every grocery store’s self-pay machine has these). Don’t see the “one person only” written on the gates either.
ReplyDeleteThe gates have been open for less than 10 hours and you are already complaining. There is in fact a screen above the gates saying 18+ and Serbian citizens only. I saw it two days ago when I was using the airport and it was already turned on. Entry to the e gates is separated from entry to passport booths. The entire egate turns either red when in use and green when it is available for use. Unless you are blind, you will see it.
DeleteYou haven't been there, you haven't tried it but you have already complained and compiled a list of assumptions.
Nisam video skoro nista od toga na nekoliko aerodroma po Evropi gde sam ove godine koristio eGates.
DeleteThis is completely unnecessary. We all have our biometric data, they have it, they have cameras with AI recognition. And kids are protected by Rome statute signed 60 years ago.
DeleteI’m all for constructive criticism but in the photo you can clearly see both the high light as well as green/red light at the base of each booth. They couldn’t have installed more lights if they wanted to.
DeleteReally nice. Bravo! 😃
ReplyDeleteYeah, it’s true. And working fast. But for Serbian passports only. For now?
ReplyDeleteSooooo, did they actually change the "Zakon o granicnoj kontroli", Article 36 - which states that biometric data can be obtained only if there is suspicion of the identity or travel document - and not as a standard procedure? Did they maybe specify if and how all this biometric data is stored? Surely they changed the Article 47 which states that passport stamp is mandatory when leaving the country.... because, what's the point then?
ReplyDeleteYour biometric data is already stored, as you need to have something to compare your biometric data with, correct? No need to additionally store the same data they already have. You would have left your fingerprints and photo when applying for the passport and the legal basis for that is Zakon o putnim ispravama.
DeleteAnd someone said, there's an officer stamping all passports after the eGates. Though this is really redundant in case of RS citizens, as every entry/exit is recorded in the database and they cannot overstay.