Digi Yatra has begun trials for international passengers at seven Indian airports, allowing eligible Indian e-passport holders to use facial recognition for identity verification at selected airport checkpoints.
The two-month programme, announced by the Ministry of Civil Aviation on November 1, will help determine how the facility can be extended to more international passengers in 2027.
The trials are being conducted at Delhi, Mumbai, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Chennai, Kochi and Amritsar airports.
During the initial phase, the facility is available to Indian nationals holding electronic passports (e-passports) who are travelling on selected international flights operated by Air India and IndiGo.
Passengers participating in the programme can use Digi Yatra at terminal entry points, security hold areas and boarding gates where the necessary equipment has been installed. The facility is not available to every international passenger or on every flight operated by the two airlines.
The programme follows earlier technical demonstrations involving IndiGo, Digi Yatra Foundation, Bengaluru airport and the International Air Transport Association (IATA). Those trials, announced in April, tested the use of digital identity credentials for international travel. The latest programme extends the testing to eligible passengers travelling through seven airports.
To use the facility, passengers must create an e-passport-based Verifiable Credential through the Digi Yatra mobile application. They need to scan the Machine Readable Zone of their passports, read the electronic chip using a smartphone equipped with Near Field Communication (NFC), and complete selfie-based identity verification.
Once the verification process is completed, the digital credential is stored in the passenger’s Digi Yatra wallet on the device.
It can then be used for facial authentication at airport checkpoints participating in the trials.
However, the facility does not replace the existing requirements for international travel.
Passengers must continue carrying their passports and other necessary documents, complete airline document verification and undergo immigration checks.
Digi Yatra is intended to reduce repeated identity verification at designated airport checkpoints rather than replace statutory border procedures.
The Ministry of Civil Aviation said passenger feedback collected during November and December will be used to plan the wider introduction of Digi Yatra for international travel in 2027. The government has not announced a specific date for full implementation or confirmed which additional international routes will be covered.
Digi Yatra has already been introduced at 39 domestic airports across India. According to the Ministry, the platform has more than 26.5 million registered users and has been used for over 110 million passenger journeys. Another 25 domestic airports are planned to be covered by 2027.
The international trials will provide an opportunity to assess the passenger experience at different airports before expanding the facility. For now, its use remains restricted to eligible e-passport holders on selected flights, with the existing airline and immigration procedures continuing alongside the digital verification process.
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