- GDRFA Dubai launched Click & Travel on September 7, 2026, cutting passport checks to about 12 to 15 seconds.
- The pilot served 31,373 passengers from May through August 31, 2026, before the airport-wide rollout.
- Arrival access starts with Emiratis and residents, while tourist visa visitors will be added later.
GDRFA Dubai launched Click & Travel on September 7, 2026, at Dubai airports, cutting passport checks to about 12 to 15 seconds. The line moved with the officer. The agency said the system uses biometric, facial-recognition, and electronic passport-reading technology, and described it as the world's first mobile service of its kind for airport passport control.
Major General Talal Ahmed Al Shanqiti, assistant director general for airport affairs at the agency, said the new setup lets officers handle entry and exit formalities without staying behind a fixed desk. He said the service can help during crowding and for people who need more mobility support.
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"The new service can be used as a backup for smart gates and the Red Carpet tunnel"
The system shifts passport control from counters to officers carrying mobile devices. They can clear a passenger wherever that person is inside the terminal. It stays close to the traveler. The department said it does not replace Smart Gates at Dubai International Airport.
Departure access covers UAE citizens, residents, GCC nationals, and visitors. Arrival access now covers Emiratis and UAE residents. Not everyone gets it yet. The department plans to widen arrivals later, including to visitors on tourist visas.
The department said 31,373 passengers used the service during the pilot phase. That trial ran from May through August 31, 2026. The launch followed successful trials at Dubai International Airport. The pilot drew real traffic.
Al Marri unveiled the rollout at Terminal 3
Lieutenant General Mohammed Ahmed Al Marri, director general of the agency, introduced the service at a press conference in Terminal 3. The setting placed the rollout in one of the airport's busiest terminals. That location mattered.
The launch also fits a longer push toward faster border processing. Dubai's Red Carpet corridor processed 745,188 travellers in the first eight months of 2026 and cut average border-processing time to 3.4 seconds for that system. Dubai Airports also said 98.95 per cent of arriving passengers were processed within 15 minutes at passport control in 2025.
The rollout sits beside Dubai's existing border systems
The new service is aimed at peak travel periods and emergencies. The agency also said it is meant to help passengers who need more flexibility, including people of determination, children, and large families. Mobility was part of the design.
Arrival access will widen later, including to visitors on tourist visas. The department has already moved one more step away from the old desk-bound model. That change is still unfolding.
