Your Emirates ID can now be used for Smart Gate system at Terminal 3

The General Directorate of Residency and Foreigners Affairs (GDRFA) recently announced activating the use of Emirates ID for the Smart Gate system at Dubai International Airport.

As part of the latest technological upgrades to the services provided at Dubai International Airport, the GDRFA said it has completed implementing the smart gate system service on the ID card at the arrivals and departures wings in Terminal 3.

The new project has been implemented in cooperation with the Emirates Identity Authority to further improve services and ensure a pleasant and smooth experience for all passengers, who now no longer require to stand in long queues to clear passport control procedures.

This activation came almost two months after the GDRFA completed the first stage of the same project with the 28 e-gates in Terminal Three arrivals, which also can be used with an Emirates ID and requires no prior registration or paying any fees.


Major General Mohammad Ahmad Al Merri, director-general of GDRFA, announced the new service with the smart gates which he said does not need prior registration as well and will only require a valid ID card instead of using one’s passport when entering and exiting the country. He said passengers’ fingerprints must also be registered with the Emirates Identity Authority.

Children under the age of 15, however, will not be able to use the system with their ID cards. Airport employees will assist them as their parents cross the smart gates, he said.

The e-gate scans biometrics of travellers before allowing them to pass through passport control. The smart gate has a similar procedure and takes an average of 12 seconds to clear a passenger.