New Zealand and Australia are working on a trial that would let some travellers cross the Tasman without showing their passport at the airport gate.
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon said the goal is a “fully digital trans-Tasman experience,” with a trial hoped to start before the 2028 T20 World Cup.
Here’s how it could work: before flying, travellers would fill in their passport and trip details online, called the NZ Traveller Declaration. At the airport, a smartphone, digital ID and facial recognition would be used instead of a paper passport, through special trans-Tasman lanes at airports in Auckland, Wellington, Christchurch and Queenstown.
Passengers would still need to carry their actual passport, and bags would still be checked as normal. Anyone who sets off an alert, or whose details don’t match, would simply go through the normal passport line instead.
Luxon said it was about “using the technology” to make trips between the two countries easier for families, holidaymakers and business travellers. The idea still needs sign-off from the Australian government before it can go ahead.
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