Hello future and goodbye paperwork…

The UAE has big plans to begin phasing out the need for residents to carry their Emirates ID cards at all times in favour of third generation biometric scanning.

According to Gulf News, Dr Saeed Abdullah bin Mutlaq Al Gafli, director general of the Emirates Identity Authority, told the Federal National Council that within the next five years methods of identification could expand to include iris scanning, facial recognition and fingerprints.

Sounds pretty high tech to us, and while five years is still a ways out, the authority is already working to allow 80 per cent of people to access government services via their smartphones by scanning the chip on their Emirates ID as soon as next year.

This will essentially streamline the use of government services, cutting down on paperwork and making things easier when it comes time to do things such as renew your residence visa or visit a doctor.

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Images: Getty, Gulf Business