Eurostar passengers traveling from London St Pancras will no longer be able to use the contactless SmartCheck gates starting February 13, 2024. The change is being implemented in preparation for the launch of the EU's Entry/Exit System (EES).
Eurostar , the high-speed train service connecting the UK to continental Europe, is making a significant change to its boarding process at London St Pancras station. Starting February 13, 2024, passengers will no longer be able to utilize the contactless SmartCheck gates, which allowed for biometric face scanning and expedited boarding. Instead, passengers will revert to the traditional method of showing their passports to border staff.
\Introduced in July 2023 after a two-year trial, SmartCheck aimed to streamline the boarding process, eliminating the need for manual passport checks and reducing passenger congestion. Passengers downloaded the iProov app, completed a pre-registration process, and then used the biometric face-scanning technology at the station. Andrew Bud, founder and CEO of iProov, previously lauded the technology, stating that it was 'saving precious time and space at the border, streamlining the boarding process to one that's far faster, more convenient, less crowded and stressful.'\This change comes in anticipation of the European Union's Entry/Exit System (EES), an automated system that will register travellers from non-EU countries at every border crossing. The EES has faced multiple delays, originally scheduled for 2022, but its implementation will require all UK passengers to register their name, travel document type, biometric data (fingerprints and facial images), and entry and exit dates and locations. The collected data is expected to be retained for three years before being erased. To ensure a smooth transition to EES, Eurostar announced plans back in May 2024 to increase staff and registration kiosks at St Pancras station. Eurostar states on its website that the removal of SmartCheck is part of these preparations, aimed at improving the border control area with new ePassport gates and additional passport control booths. They aim to make the border control process as seamless as possible for passengers in the coming months and after the EES launch
EUROSTAR SMARTCHECK CONTACTLESS BOARDING LONDON ST PANCRAS EU ENTRY/EXIT SYSTEM EES BORDER CONTROL
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