Archive Website of the UK government

Automated border controls

The new ePassport gates

ePassport gates can be a quicker and more convenient way of getting through passport control.

The gates work by using facial recognition technology to compare your face to the photograph recorded on the ‘chip’ in your passport.

Your details are also checked against the full range of UK Border Agency systems - just as if they were seen by an officer.

Once the checks are made, the gates open automatically for you to walk through.

With their recent installation at Heathrow and Gatwick, ePassport gates can now be found at all major UK airports.

These include; Birmingham Terminals 1&2, Bristol, Cardiff, East Midlands, Gatwick North & South, Luton, Manchester Terminals 1&2, Heathrow T1, T3, T4, and T5 and Stansted.

So far over 4.5 million people have used the gates since the first gates went live at Manchester Airport in 2008.

Who can use the ePassport gates?

Biometric 'chipped' passports have this symbol

You don’t have to register to use the new ePassport gates.

You must however be a UK, European Union or European Economic Area citizen and have a ‘chipped’ biometric passport.

If you have a 'chipped' biometric passport it will have the symbol on the picture to the left and will have been issued from 2006 onwards.

You must also be aged 18 or over, unless otherwise stated on airport signs.

• What are biometric passports? (travel and transport section)

Further information

For further information on ePassport gates, visit the UK Border Agency website by following the link below.

• ePassport gates - UK Border Agency Opens new window

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• What to expect at the airport (travel and transport section)

• What to expect from an airport security check (disabled people section)