The Home Office has started rolling out e-visas for existing holders of physical immigration documents like Biometric Residence Permits and Biometric Residence Cards.
Millions of such residents will start receiving email invites from today, in batches, prompting them to create a UK Visas and Immigration account that will serve as digital proof of their legal immigration status.
The announcement follows the British government's plans we had earlier reported on that focus on fully digitalizing the border systems and phasing out physical immigration documents by 2025.
Organizations that require proof of your immigration status will conduct a quick and simple check via the GOV.UK website, whereas, public bodies such as the NHS England and Department for Work and Pensions can automatically and securely access an individual's status when they apply to access benefits and public services.
Much like BRPs, an e-visa will be securely linked to its holder's unique biometric information.
The shift to e-visas aligns with other developed countries that have already moved towards or are planning on adopting digital forms of immigration status.
While e-visas offer some advantages and the greater convenience of not having to worry about collecting and carrying physical documents, there may be some caveats.
Despite their drawbacks, a key advantage of physical documents, especially chip-based ones, is their ability to be reliably verified offline, given the basics of public-key encryption.
When combined with additional security features such as UV holograms and watermarks built into these documents, the dependence on an always-online system is practically eliminated.
In other words, one can even use an NFC-powered smartphone app to securely read and verify the authenticity of a BRP card with utmost confidence, without being connected to the Internet.
The document holder's details and photograph-all digitally signed by the issuing government, are stored in the biometric chip itself.
Despite this, passengers have faced chaos at airports in the past when eGates went down.
BleepingComputer posed the question to the Home Office but is yet to receive clarity on the matter.
Millions already use e-visas after their enrollment as part of the EU Settlement Scheme, and UK visitors from several countries are, in any case, granted an Electronic Travel Authorisation as opposed to a physical visa sticker, so the technology seems to be delivering thus far.
People already with an e-visa don't need to take any additional steps but are advised to keep their information and passport details up to date in their UKVI account.
The UK government still advises individuals to carry their valid physical immigration documents when traveling internationally, until these expire.
Additional information and updates regarding the rollout will be published at www.
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This Cyber News was published on www.bleepingcomputer.com. Publication date: Wed, 17 Apr 2024 05:50:03 +0000