Dubai: Colonel Khalid bin Madia Al Falasi, Assistant Director General of the Digital Services Sector at the General Directorate of Identity and Foreigners Affairs (GDRFA) in Dubai, has revealed plans to expand the “Red Carpet” system across all Dubai airports in phases, based on technical and operational readiness and security requirements.
He said the project represents a major shift in the travel experience, allowing eligible passengers to complete passport procedures within 3.4 seconds while on the move, without stopping or presenting documents.
The number of people using the “Red Carpet” system reached 1,311,598 by the end of the third quarter of 2026, while digital content related to the project recorded about four billion views across digital platforms, reflecting widespread interest in the smart government service.
Al Falasi said GDRFA Dubai is developing an integrated system of digital and proactive services aimed at eliminating unnecessary procedures and reducing the need for customers to provide information already available to the relevant authorities.
The authority is also using artificial intelligence and advanced technologies to improve services for travellers, residents and investors, in line with Dubai’s rapid growth.
Airport expansion
Al Falasi said plans to expand the “Red Carpet” system followed the positive results of the initiative and reflected the belief that distinguished government services should be extended to the largest possible number of travellers.
He said expansion was not simply a matter of increasing the number of smart corridors. It also required maintaining the system’s efficiency and reliability and ensuring its integration with security and operational requirements, in coordination with strategic partners.
The expansion will be implemented in stages, taking into account the readiness of technical and operational infrastructure and the categories of passengers eligible to use the service. The approach is intended to ensure sustainable results while maintaining the quality of the passenger experience.
Leadership directives
Al Falasi said the development of the “Red Carpet” system was based on directives from His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, to review procedures that require travellers to provide information already available to the relevant authorities.
He said the directives were translated into clear digital requirements, placing the reduction of steps and simplification of procedures at the heart of service design.
Rather than simply speeding up traditional verification procedures, the project sought to redesign the entire passenger journey, shifting from a model in which passengers stop at a service point to one in which procedures are completed while they are moving.
Al Falasi said the project won the Dubai-it Award, launched by His Highness Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Defence and Chairman of the Executive Council of Dubai, in recognition of government innovation and the efforts of the teams and partners who turned the concept into reality.
Seamless travel
Al Falasi said the ambitions of the Digital Services Sector extend beyond reducing the time needed to complete passport procedures, with a focus on creating a more convenient and seamless travel experience.
This involves viewing the traveller’s journey as an integrated process that begins before arrival at the airport and continues after departure.
He said developing services begins with mapping the traveller’s journey, identifying stops and repeated steps, then finding digital and integrated solutions to reduce them, rather than simply upgrading the devices or screens used in existing procedures.
The “Red Carpet” system provides a practical example of what can be achieved when a procedure is redesigned from the ground up, he said, adding that the goal is for travellers to experience the quality and simplicity of the service without having to think about the technology and procedures behind it.
Technical challenges
Al Falasi said completing passport procedures while passengers are moving presented a significant technical and operational challenge because multiple components must function together accurately within a very short period.
The challenges extend beyond the speed of identification and verification to include the reliability of data flows, integration between systems, continuity of service and clear procedures for cases requiring different handling.
He said teams had worked with partners to align security and operational requirements with the goal of facilitating passenger movement, ensuring that speed did not come at the expense of decision-making quality or service reliability.
The project required testing different operational scenarios and continuously improving the passenger experience to develop a model combining speed, accuracy and safety.
Al Falasi said one of the most important lessons from the “Red Carpet” initiative was that successful digital transformation depends not only on technology, but also on the integration of systems, processes and people.
Artificial intelligence
On the future use of artificial intelligence in government services, Al Falasi said advanced technologies offered significant opportunities to improve services and their ability to respond to customers’ needs, but their use must deliver genuine value to beneficiaries.
He said services and customer-related procedures were being reviewed with the aim of reducing the number of steps and eliminating or combining requirements where possible.
On the prospect of residency transactions and renewals being completed automatically in the future, Al Falasi said this would depend on the nature of each service, its legal and regulatory conditions, and approval and verification requirements.
He said GDRFA Dubai aims to minimise customer involvement in completing services whenever approved requirements allow.
