Why Are Passport Stamps Going Away?

Sad news for nostalgic travelers — the days of admiring new stamps in your passport are almost at an end. Many countries are moving away from passport stamps in favor of digital alternatives that are more secure and efficient, experts say.

The move is already happening in some countries, so you may have even seen this during your international travels, but it will happen in more airports across the world in the coming months and years.

“I think the biggest thing to point out is that passport stamps really came into their own in the era of the 1950s and ’60s when travel really was made more accessible for people — air travel, specifically,” said Katy Nastro, a spokesperson and travel expert at Going.

In the years to come, more and more people were crossing borders to visit destinations outside of their home country.

“And then you come into the ’80s and ’90s and we saw specific precautions of certain ink to be used that couldn’t be replicated and specific distinctive symbols and marks and machine-readable text in the early 2000s,” Nastro added.

This all helped make passport stamps more secure, but times are changing. Now, technology is digital-first, she noted. Your boarding pass is likely on your phone, in addition to certain immigration forms like mobile passport control.

“The world is moving away from those physical passport stamps and toward digital systems, all for the sake of increased security, more efficient border crossings and a more standardized form of data collection,” Gabe Saglie, a senior editor at Travelzoo, told HuffPost via email.

This is why you’re seeing more digital-first options like Global Entry, TSA Pre-Check, CLEAR, mobile boarding passes, and mobile passport control.

“You see places around the world adopting these e-gates, which will just automatically use your biometrics to then scan against your passport,” said Nastro.

This is already the case in countries like the United Kingdom, said Nastro, but TSA also announced a partnership with CLEAR to establish e-gates in certain parts of the U.S.

The e-gate process goes like this: You approach the gate, and it scans your biometrics, your passport and takes a photo of you, Nastro said.

“They cross-reference both of those, and then the gate opens and you’re allowed to go through,” she continued, with no passport stamp necessary.

Other countries are also already leaning into the digital entry options.

“Australia was an early adopter, with a transition to digital passport stamps that started in 2012. Hong Kong, Singapore and Argentina have transitioned to digital entry/exit systems, and the U.S. has been phasing in digital systems gradually,” said Sagile.

Passport stamps are nostalgic for many, which may make this move sad.

In a way, it’s the end of an era, just like how most people no longer use checkbooks and instead choose services like Zelle, PayPal and Venmo.

“For many people, collecting passport stamps has long been a cherished tradition and an exciting part of the international travel experience; eliminating that tangible record of their travels could have an emotional effect, changing the nostalgic element of visiting other countries,” Sagile said.

“The doing away of passport stamps … it’s that golden age of travel is sort of disappearing,” said Nastro.

No matter how you feel, we are moving toward a world where physical passport stamps will no longer exist, Nastro said. Sagile added that there’s no avoiding it.

If you’re particularly nostalgic and really want that passport stamp, it’s worth asking in the airport if they offer commemorative stamps for visitors, Nastro noted. Not all airports will, but some may.

Long lines at customs are not what any traveler wants to see when getting to their destination or arriving home from an international trip.

“This transition into this digital age, it makes immigration, especially, much more efficient,” Nastro said. “If anybody’s been through immigration, especially at a smaller airport in the last few years, it can definitely be frustrating to be in these long immigration lines,” she added.

While change is always intimidating, the move away from passport stamps shouldn’t cause alarm. It won’t cause issues for most people.

“For most travelers, this should streamline the travel experience, making entry to, and exit from, foreign countries automated and, therefore, quicker and easier,” said Sagile.

Nothing about needing your actual passport to visit a foreign country is changing, he added.

(So, yes, you still need to bring your passport with you.)

“The passport itself remains the primary document for international travel. This is a change to how border authorities are able to track your movements,” Sagile said.

In terms of digital privacy, some travelers may be concerned about biometric data gathering, “so for them, some travel habits may certainly be affected,” Sagile said.

Folks in this group may decide to travel more domestically instead of internationally, he noted.

The move away from passport stamps will take time and won’t be an overnight change in every country in the world.

As mentioned above, this is already the case in certain countries like Singapore and Australia, and is in process in other places across the globe, including the U.S.

This shift won’t happen all at once. You can still expect passport stamps from certain places, but don’t be surprised if you aren’t offered one in others.

“This is likely going to take years, not a year to go into effect,” Nastro said. “Likely within the next decade, we could see most major [developed] countries adopting this,” she noted.

“The next big move will come from the [European Union], when it begins to phase in its Entry/Exit System in October, with full implementation expected by April,” said Sagile.

This process is expected to start on Oct. 12 of this year and be fully implemented by April 10, 2026.

“Known as EES, it’ll replace physical passport stamps for non-EU residents entering the 29-nation Schengen area,” he noted. The Schengen area consists of countries like Greece, France, Croatia, Italy, Norway, Portugal, Spain, Denmark, Sweden and more.

″[The Schengen area will be] relying instead on biometric data like facial scans and fingerprints. This will affect all non-EU travelers, including tourists from visa-exempt countries like the U.S., the U.K., Canada, Australia and Japan,” noted Sagile.

This change will also add some additional pre-travel requirements for people traveling to the region, he noted. “Being aware of new requirements, and being cognizant of additional deadlines, will definitely help make travel abroad more enjoyable,” said Sagile.

If you plan to travel abroad anytime soon, and especially to the European Union in 2026, you should pay attention to what documents you need before boarding the plane. The U.S. Department of State has a searchable database of entry requirements for every country in the world.

The impending passport changes are expected to speed things along in the actual airport, but changes like this can also cause confusion and last-minute stress.

Be sure to plan ahead so you can enjoy your international travels, whether or not you end up with a stamp in your passport booklet.