Singapore's Changi Airport is set to go passport-free from next year, using only biometric data for immigration clearance.
It comes after the major Southeast Asian transport hub was ranked the world's best airport in Skytrax's annual ranking.
CNN reports the country's communications minister, Josephine Teo, told Parliament: "Singapore will be one of the first few countries in the world to introduce automated, passport-free immigration clearance."
Facial recognition software is already used in some parts of the airport, but the change will aim to "reduce the need for passengers to repeatedly present their travel documents at touch points and allow for more seamless and convenient processing".
The "single [biometric] token of authentication" system will be applied from bag-drop to boarding.
It's set to eliminate the need for a passport - but only at Changi.
Teo stressed travellers will still need their passports for many countries outside of Singapore that do not offer passport-free clearance.
But it will add extra convenience for the millions of passengers who pass through the hub each month.
In June, 5.12 million passengers passed through, arrived at or departed from the airport.
Teo said: "Our immigration systems must be able to manage this high and growing volume of travellers efficiently and provide a positive clearance experience, while ensuring our security."
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