Australian to roll out digital passenger cards
Sydney (14 July)
The Australian Government will supplement its paper-based Incoming Passenger Card (IPD) with the digital Australia Travel Declaration (ATD) over the next 12-18 months to speed up and improve border processing at airports and seaports.
It plans to roll out ATD-based processing in all Australian international airports and seaports over the next 12-18 months, Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke said on 13 July.
Passengers on some Qantas flights to Brisbane, Sydney, and Melbourne have been able to fill out the ATD – instead of paper-based forms – since October 2024, Burke added. Qantas will work with the Australian Government to roll out ATD-based processing to other airports by the end of 2026, according to Burke.
The ATD collects the same information as the IPD. Passengers can complete the digital form up to 72 hours before their arrival and amend it until a border official scans the document.
Australia’s ATD rollout is expected to help biosecurity officials respond to potential threats quickly. “The [ATD] will strengthen Australia’s biosecurity by providing better quality information earlier, helping [officials] identify and respond to potential biosecurity risks before they reach our shores,” Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries, and Forestry Julie Collins said.
The digital declaration will also help air passengers avoid the mild, acute stress that comes from realising they do not have a pen on hand and need to borrow one from the person seated beside them, Lithos understands slightly too well.
Australia’s ATD rollout comes three years after the New Zealand Government rolled out its digital New Zealand Travel Declaration (NZTD) in July-August 2023 to improve border processing.
The NZTD has allowed Immigration New Zealand (INZ) staff to pre-clear passengers before they land and focus on managing immigration risks, according to INZ National Manager Border Peter Elms.
Three-quarters of all passengers entering New Zealand completed the NZTD in April 2026, up from 20% in September 2023, data from Stats NZ show.
By Avinash Govind