The traveler discovered shortly before his scheduled departure on Sept. 15 that his passport had only about a month left before expiry, while his destination required visitors to have at least six months of remaining validity, NDTV reported.
Rather than delay or cancel his trip, he used a passport renewal service at Dubai International Airport available exclusively to UAE nationals, India Today reported.
“I was told there was nothing faster than Dubai Airport and that it would take 10 minutes,” he said in a video shared on social media. “But I was surprised that it took even less, eight minutes, not 10.”
He praised the service for its efficiency and said he felt proud of the UAE after receiving his renewed passport within minutes.
Dubai International Airport, the world’s busiest international travel hub last year, has a dedicated passport renewal facility for UAE nationals at the Immigration Center in the arrivals area of Terminal 3, according to Dubai Airports.
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People queue at the check-in counter at Dubai International Airport, in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, April 17, 2024. Photo by Reuters |
The service is linked to the UAE’s government immigration and citizenship systems, allowing eligible Emirati citizens to have their details verified and passport applications processed through the government infrastructure.
According to the department, passport renewal transactions that previously took around 35 minutes had been reduced to seven minutes. It also said the number of steps required for passport and identity procedures had been reduced from 20 to one through its smart system.
The digital system allows eligible UAE nationals to renew their passports at the airport without having to complete traditional paperwork or visit a passport office.
But the rapid renewal service is exclusively for UAE nationals.
Travelers of other nationalities who encounter passport validity problems at the airport must follow the applicable procedures for their own travel documents.