Exit checks system for UK borders finally goes live

The Home Office has finally launched a system for making exit checks of travellers at UK borders, a service originally intended as part of the troubled e-Borders system that recently cost the government £150m to settle a contract dispute.

Exit checks will record the details of all passengers leaving the UK, via air, train or sea. This will allow authorities to know whether people who entered the country have left when they are meant to. The move is an important part of UK immigration policy, as it allows the government to count the number of people entering and leaving the country.

Passengers will have their passports scanned and, by mid-June 2015, all their details will be verified against Home Office databases. Data will be collected by airport and seaport operators, who in the past have objected to providing such a function over concerns it would cause delays for departing passengers. The Home Office said the system was designed to “take into account the unique needs of businesses and the challenges faced in each port or on each route”.

Minister for security and immigration James Brokenshire said: “Port and travel operators are experts in their business and know their customers best, which is why we’ve supported them to design and trial the systems for collecting data in a way that will minimise the impact on customers.”

“The UK already has one of the most comprehensive systems in the world for recording who travels across our borders – delivering on our commitment to reintroduce exit checks will make us more secure and better informed than ever.”