The Movement Towards Digital Travel Credentials

The market for electronic passports (e-passports) and electronic visas (e-visas) is experiencing rapid growth, driven by their enhanced security over paper documents and improved convenience for travelers. E-passports and e-visas represent a shift towards increasingly digital and biometric identity verification in cross-border travel.

According to MRFR, The E-passport and E-visa market size is projected to grow from USD26.6813 Billion in 2023 to USD 43.49838 billion by 2032

Market Overview

The e-passport and e-visa market consists of:

• Document Manufacturers - Companies contracted by governments to produce electronic travel documents integrated with biometric chips.
• Government Agencies - Responsible for immigration checks, digital ID verification, and border control infrastructure.
• IT Solution Providers - Technology vendors that provide systems integration, software and data services for e-passport and e-visa rollout.
• Chip Vendors - Companies that design and manufacture the tiny chip modules embedded in e-passports.

Major segments include:

• Biometric Chips - The integrated circuit chips containing traveler biometric data.
• Scanners - Electronic document scanners and biometric scanners used by border control and airport authorities.
• Verification Systems - Backend systems that validate and process e-passport/e-visa data.
• Border Control eGates - Automated self-service gates using e-passport/biometric verification.

Leading Players

Key companies in the global e-passport and e-visa industry include:

• Gemalto - A major e-passport manufacturer and biometric chip maker acquired by Thales Group.
• Muhlbauer Group - Provides end-to-end e-passport solutions from document production to issuance systems.
• Entrust - Offers identity verification and e-passport manufacturing technologies.
• HID Global - Provides e-visa systems, biometric scanners and citizen identity solutions for governments.
• IDEMIA - A major producer of e-passports, electronic ID cards and biometric visa systems.

Browse In-depth Market Research Report (100 Pages, Charts, Tables, Figures) on E-passport and E-visa Market

Growth Drivers

Factors propelling market growth:

• Increased Border Security - Electronic documents better verify identity and combat fraud.
• Biometric Integration - Inclusion of biometric data like facial, fingerprint and iris recognition.
• Contactless Technology - Enables faster processing and convenience for travelers.
• Rising Digitalization - Governments digitizing visa and passport issuance processes and records.
• E-Gate Expansion - Growing deployment of automated border control eGates at airports, seaports and land borders.
• Return on Investment - Electronic documents provide savings over manually processed paper-based documents.

Regional Insights

• North America and Europe lead adoption due to investments in border infrastructure and early rollout.
• Asia Pacific is a fast growing market led by China, Japan and India’s expanding middle classes and accelerating e-passport issuance.
• The Middle East, Africa and Latin America present long-term growth opportunities as adoption increases.

With biometrics and digital verification enhancing security over paper documents, e-passports and e-visas will continue seeing strong global demand. As travel rebounds post-COVID, this creates lucrative opportunities for companies providing end-to-end electronic travel document solutions.