Australia’s digital passenger card has landed at the country’s busiest international airport, with passengers on select flights arriving from across the ditch now eligible to trial the technology.
In the next phase of a trial that began in Brisbane almost a year ago, travellers on two Qantas flights from New Zealand to Sydney will be able to ditch paper-based incoming passenger cards for the Australia Travel Declaration (ATD).
The ATD is Australian Border Force’s latest attempt to replace the yellow arrivals card as part of a decade-long push to modernise border processes under the ‘Seamless Traveller’ initiative.
It follows two failed attempts to replace the yellow arrivals card, with the last 2021 project part of the failed permissions capability platform that cost the federal government $16 million.
As many as 70,000 passengers have already used the ATD to clear biosecurity and border controls as part of the trial, which began with select flights arriving into Brisbane International Airport last October.
Since then, the app — which allows passengers that complete the digital form to receive a digital pass with a QR code that needs to be shown to border officials on arrival — has expanded to all Qantas flights into Brisbane.
Home Affairs minister Tony Burke said expanding the trial to select New Zealand flights arriving into Sydney Airport would be popular and give hundreds more passengers a more seamless travel experience daily.
Sydney Airport remains the country’s busiest airport, with the 16.3 million international passengers passing through its terminals last year putting it well ahead of Melbourne and Brisbane.
“When people arrive in Sydney, I want them out of the airport and experiencing the city as fast as possible. Extending the trial to Australia’s busiest airport means every day, hundreds more passengers will have a more seamless travel experience,” Mr Burke said.
ABF commissioner Gav Reynolds and Qantas International & Freight chief executive Cam Wallace described the expanded pilot as a huge step forward in the journey to simplify arrivals processes.
“A significant amount of collaborative work between industry and government has gone into this pilot program. It is now entering the next phase as we continue to enhance the passenger experience, creating a seamless travel capability,” Mr Reynolds said.
The ABF is now working with the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry to expand the trial to additional inbound and outbound Qantas flights from Sydney, as well as to other airports and airlines.
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