IATA and IAG, the parent company of British Airways and Iberia, have been working on a digital passport system to “manage, share and verify test data matched with traveller identities” to support the safe reopening of borders. The system will be trialled by the end of the year and, if successful, will launch in the first quarter of 2021.
IATA Travel Pass comprises four key parts: a global registry of health requirements, a global registry of testing and vaccination centres, an app for labs and test centres to upload test and vaccination certificates, and an app for passengers to access these certificates, share them with airlines and authorities and to operate as a digital 'passport'.
“Today borders are double locked," said Alexandre de Juniac, IATA’s director general and CEO. "Testing is the first key to enable international travel without quarantine measures. The second key is the global information infrastructure needed to securely manage, share and verify test data matched with traveler identities in compliance with border control requirements. That’s the job of IATA Travel Pass. We are bringing this to market in the coming months to also meet the needs of the various travel bubbles and public health corridors that are starting operation."
Nick Careen, IATA's senior vice president, airport, passenger, cargo and security, said, “Our main priority is to get people travelling again safely. In the immediate term that means giving governments confidence that systematic Covid-19 testing can work as a replacement for quarantine requirements. And that will eventually develop into a vaccine programme. The IATA Travel Pass is a solution for both.
“We have built it using a modular approach based on open source standards to facilitate interoperability. It can be used in combination with other providers or as a standalone end-to-end solution. The most important thing is that it is responsive to industry’s needs while enabling a competitive market."
The platform will make use of IATA’s Timatic passport and visa platform and its OneID identity initiative.