Official opening of e-gates

10 July 2015

Citizens of the European Union who are at least 12 years old and come from a country outside the Schengen area, can henceforth have their ID checked digitally at Brussels Airport. Six automated border control gates were inaugurated by Mr. Jan Jambon, Minister of the Interior, and Mr. Theo Francken, State Secretary for Asylum Policy and Migration. The new equipment cost EUR 2.4 million. The national airport relies on financial support from the European External Borders Fund, which should make a financial contribution amounting to 75 % of the total investment. The remaining quarter would be borne by the airport (12.5 % of the total amount) and the Federal Police (12.5 %). This public-private partnership is a first for the Federal Police, said the General Commissioner of the Federal Police, Catherine De Bolle. At a later stage, automated control gates will be installed in the entrance hall of Brussels Airport.

The General Commissioner of the Federal Police, the Minister of the Interior and the State Secretary for Asylum Policy and Migration have acknowledged the effectiveness of the e-gates in the fight against terrorism in Belgium.

The e-gates automatically check the authenticity of the identity documents (Belgian identity cards and European passports) by means of facial recognition. The system compares the photo of the identity document with a digital photo taken on the spot. It also checks whether the holder of the identity document is to be searched in the police database. If the gates don’t open, the police officers on duty will take care of the passenger.

In good conditions, it would take 20 seconds on average to check the passenger. On the other hand, police officers can see whether passengers are behaving suspiciously, which isn’t possible with e-gates. The aim is to respond to the increased number of passengers travelling through Brussels Airport these past few years. In order to make controls smoother, the people who designed the project tried to improve the conditions in which the pictures are taken, in particular by trying to catch the passengers’ attention better. The automated control gates are reserved for citizens of the European Union, who account for two thirds of all passengers at Brussels Airport. Passengers who aren’t EU nationals remain subject to other entry conditions and manual checks. Children under the age of twelve cannot pass through the e-gates because of the changing morphology of their faces.