The Australian Border Force (ABF) has quietly switched on a live pilot of facial-recognition “primary-line” cameras at Canberra International Airport this weekend, marking the first time the capital’s airport has processed arriving passengers without handing their passports to an officer. According to a notice published on the ABF’s "Arriving and Leaving" page late on 26 September, travellers who choose the manual passport desks may now have a high-definition image captured and matched to their document in real time. The pilot brings Canberra into line with the SmartGate experience already familiar at Sydney and Melbourne, but uses next-generation cameras integrated into the officer’s counter rather than the free-standing e-gate kiosks. ABF officials say the four-month trial will test whether a one-to-one facial match at the counter can cut average clearance times by 30 percent while still allowing officers to ask secondary-screening questions. The technology is provided by a consortium led by Vision-Box and NEC, the same vendors behind Singapore’s Changi Terminal 4. Importantly, the system does not store images permanently; biometric templates are encrypted and deleted after 90 days unless linked to an active investigation. For corporate mobility managers the project is significant because Canberra handles the bulk of diplomatic shuttles between the federal capital and New Zealand, Singapore and Qatar. Faster clearance means tighter connection windows are now feasible for fly-in analysts and executives who commute to Parliament House. However, ABF warns that passengers who decline facial capture will be processed manually, so mixed travelling parties should plan for the slowest option. The pilot also foreshadows the government’s A$56.1 million Border Modernisation Package announced in July, which will phase out paper Incoming Passenger Cards nationwide by 2027. If Canberra’s results mirror trials at Darwin and Cairns last year—where refusal rates fell below 2 percent—the cameras are likely to be rolled out to Adelaide and Hobart in 2027. In the meantime, employers should update pre-departure briefings to include the option to opt-in or opt-out of live facial capture and remind staff that hats, large headphones and sunglasses must be removed whilst the image is taken.
Source: Australian Border Force
