Ben-Gurion airport has rolled out 17 automated border control kiosks.
The new ABC kiosks are in addition to the four that were already in place as part of a pilot program.
The biometric passport kiosks speeds up the long waiting periods at Passport Control by enabling Israelis and tourists to authorize their identity via a facial recognition system.
There are a few stations that are specifically optimized for children, the disabled, and shorter individuals.
The 17 kiosks were installed after the Central Bureau for Population and Immigration Authority completed a legally mandatory satisfaction survey, which found that most Israeli passengers were highly satisfied with biometric passports while 86% approved of the shorter wait time and of the new process overall.
In April, Israel’s Interior Minister Gilad Erdan announced that he will soon be forwarding legislation that would make a biometric registration mandatory for every citizen, saying that it will improve security for the state.
Biometrics registration is currently undergoing a two-year pilot phase in Israel with citizens given the option of applying either for regular ID cards and passport or biometric versions. However, the Central Bureau of Statistics revealed last September that only around a third of ID card and passport applicants had opted for the biometric option.
Ben Gurion Airport, near Tel Aviv, is the main international airport of Israel.
