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Biometric Passports
Summary: Biometric Passports have a chip which gives immigration officers more information about your facial features, this makes it more secure and protects your identity.   

 What is a Biometric passport?
 All passports issued in the UK now have a chip embedded into the front or back cover or centre page of the document itself which includes biometric information used to identify the individual travelling.  
Taken from the original passport photo, details stored on this chip include the particular shape, size and position of a person's facial features as well as unique characteristics that can build up an electronic image of the user to authenticate their identity.
 The chip also includes the vital information that is printed on the personal details page of the passport which is securely encrypted and can then be checked against the the Passport Office database to further improve the effectiveness with which passports are issued and monitored.
This facility has become particularly useful with the introduction of automated passport gates which can use the contactless technology incorporated into the chip to read the passport itself and check travellers as they pass through these gates against images held on the the Passport Office central record.
Advantages of Biometric passports
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Due to the added security incorporated into this type of technology, many countries including the United States of America, now waive the requirement to obtain certain visas when entering the country if you hold a machine readable passport.
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Limits passport fraud and forgery
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In some countries passports are checked using an automated system which saves time.
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Effective controls at border crossing.

 Though there is no current requirement to exchange your traditional passport for the biometric alternative, if you are travelling to a country that provides additional courtesies to machine readable passport holders and have less than 9 months remaining on your passport, then it is possible to renew your application now and take advantage of these improvements.