A re-elected National Party government would trial paperless travel across the Tasman before the 2028 T20 World Cup, under a plan that needs Australia's backing, party leader Christopher Luxon has announced.
Luxon announced the policy at Coronet Peak near Queenstown, alongside National tourism spokesperson Louise Upston.
Under the plan, eligible Australian and New Zealand citizens would use a smartphone, digital credentials and facial recognition through more of the airport journey, with no paper passport required at the gate.
"We want a fully digital trans-Tasman experience, where eligible travellers can rely on a smartphone, their digital credentials and biometric technology through more of the airport journey, and we intend to have a trial in place around that before 2028," he said.
"It is in both of our countries' interests to make trans-Tasman travel as easy as possible, whether it's for holidays, whether it's for visiting family, or for doing business."
Former Air NZ boss Luxon said he had championed the idea long before politics.
"Coming from my background before politics, I'm really a big supporter of it, and I drove a lot of that in my former life around a more seamless, domestic-like experience between Australia and New Zealand," he said.
But the passport would not disappear from the process as travellers would still have to hold one and register ahead of time.
Travellers would submit their passport and travel details digitally before departure and complete the NZ Traveller Declaration before flying, according to National.
They would then use a dedicated trans-Tasman arrival lane at Auckland, Wellington, Christchurch and Queenstown airports.
Biosecurity policies and bag checks also still apply as normal for international travel.
Anyone who triggered a border alert, could not be matched to their passport or made a declaration needing a closer look would be sent back into normal processing.
Luxon said the risk remained the same in terms of sovereignty.
"We've got the same safeguards around sovereignty, around risks that we may have, biosecurity, all of those things remain in place," he said.
"We're just digitising it even further and even more, and using the technology to do so."
Australia's call
The document sets out changes only at New Zealand airports, as Luxon said National would need to bring Canberra along.
"We'll work it through with the Australians. And as Louise says, we'll get a trial in place," he said. "We've got two years before the international cricket competition comes here."
Asked whether the policy needed National at all, since it appeared to have cross-party support, Luxon said it did.
"Oh no, you need National to get things done. I mean, that's the bottom line, isn't it?" he said. "We saw a Labour government for six years that failed to get anything done."
Labour leader Chris Hipkins didn't take kindly to the suggestion when asked.
"Albo and I talked about that when he visited New Zealand. I think it was July 2023. We agreed that we would get that work done within 12 months. What's taken them so long?
"Why the delay? At the time, Christopher Luxon said that he was sceptical about the idea. Maybe that's the reason it hasn't already happened. We talked about this three and a half years ago, and we said we'd try and get progress within 12 months.
"The Australians were on board with it. The Kiwis were on board with it. What's happened at the New Zealand end that means it hasn't happened?" he said.
National's policy document stated Australian PM Anthony Albanese and Hipkins, then prime minister, set up the Trans-Tasman Seamless Travel Group in 2023. Luxon and Albanese endorsed its work in August 2024.
The Prime Minister acknowledged the project had spanned successive governments.
"This is under successive governments, as you saw back to 2008/2009, actually with the introduction of the eGates," he said.
"We've just got to keep relentlessly working away and chipping away at it."
Australians and New Zealanders travelled between the two countries without passports from 1973 until 1981, when Australia began requiring them, partly over fears that terrorists and drug traffickers could pose as New Zealanders. New Zealand followed suit in 1987.
Among its international examples, National cited the UK-Ireland Common Travel Area.
TVNZ has extensive coverage of the election campaign. (Source: TVNZ)
SHARE ME