E Passport Facility With Chip: India has now officially started adopting e-passports with chips. This is a new and secure method for international identification, which has already been adopted by many countries of the world. This facility has been started in 13 cities of the country from May 2025. Its purpose is to strengthen the security of borders, prevent identity fraud and make it easier for people to travel abroad.
E-passports Application: India has now joined the list of countries using biometric e-passports with chips. These include more than 120 countries including the US, Canada, Mexico, Brazil, France, Italy, Japan. This is a big step for the country due to which now everyone will be able to travel internationally easily. With the help of this new technology, the security of India’s borders will be strengthened, identity fraud can be prevented and the immigration process of passengers will also become faster than before. Let’s know what benefits you are going to get from this and which countries already have the chip facility.
Testing has been done in these cities
E-passport in India was launched in April 2024 under the “Passport Seva Program 2.0”. It was first tested in some big cities like Nagpur, Bhubaneswar, Jammu, Goa, Shimla, Raipur, Amritsar, Jaipur, Chennai, Hyderabad, Surat and Ranchi. Now it is expected that it will be fully implemented across the country by mid-2025.
What is e-passport?
E-passport is a next generation passport which has a special chip (RFID chip) and antenna inside the back cover. Important information of the passport holder such as name, date of birth, passport number, photo and fingerprints are stored securely in this chip. All this information is coded in a special way so that no one can read it easily. International security techniques have been used to keep this data safe such as – Basic Access Control (BAC), Passive Authentication (PA), and Extended Access Control (EAC).
What are the benefits of this passport
Biometric e-passports have now become the new identity for safe and easy travel around the world. They have a small chip, which will instantly reveal your identity at immigration checkpoints. This makes it possible to cross the border quickly and without any manual check through e-gates. This eliminates the need to stand in long queues and provides more convenience to passengers.
India’s move towards e-passport is in line with the security standards of the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO). With this, Indian passengers will also get the same facilities that citizens of countries that have advanced digitally get. Also, this will strengthen India’s credibility at the global level.
Countries where e-passport is being used
Americas: United States: Used since 2007, takes facial and fingerprint biometrics.
Canada: Introduced in 2013, features automatic border kiosks.
Mexico: Introduced in 2021 to strengthen border security.
Brazil, Argentina, Chile, Colombia, Peru: Introduced between 2010 and 2016, are built to international rules (ICAO) and are valid worldwide.
Europe
France, Italy, UK, Germany: These countries started adopting this technology from 2005–2006. They have integrated it with the Schengen e-gates installed at their airports, which makes identification of passengers quick and easy.
Ukraine, Russia: These countries have a fully biometric system and digital ID is also linked to it, which has made the identification process even smarter.
These countries also have this passport facility
Asia: Japan, China, South Korea: These countries have been using e-passports since the 2000s and have made improvements from time to time.
Bangladesh, Pakistan, Nepal: These South Asian countries are also now using e-passport facility.
Malaysia: This country was one of the first countries to use e-passports since 1998, and by 2010 it was updated according to international standards (ICAO).
Saudi Arabia, Singapore, Indonesia: These countries’ e-passport systems are fully integrated with the world’s modern border control systems.
Africa
Countries like Nigeria, Kenya, South Africa and Rwanda have issued biometric passports to comply with their regional and international regulations.
Oceania
Australia and New Zealand were the first to adopt this system and have also integrated it with their smart e-border system. Now with India joining this system, Indian citizens will get quick and safe entry in countries where visa on arrival and e-gate facility is available.
What is the application process
You can now apply for an e-passport online and get it from select Passport Seva Kendras (PSKs) or Regional Passport Offices (RPOs). These services are available in Chennai, Nagpur, Hyderabad, Jaipur and other cities. In the coming time, this service will be started in more cities.
To apply for e-passport online, follow these steps:
1. Register on the Passport Seva Online portal.
2. Login using your registered ID.
3. Click on “Apply for Fresh Passport/Re-issue of Passport”. Select “Fresh” if you are applying for a passport for the first time and “Reissue” if you have previously held a similar passport.
4. Pay the fee online and book an appointment.
5. Print or save your application receipt, or show the SMS confirmation during the appointment.
6. Visit your chosen PSK or RPO on the scheduled date with original documents.
