IRIS being discontinued?

Have just read this.......
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-17058448

Does anyone know why it's being stopped?
I've always found it very handy as I don't have a new fangled biometric passport allowing me to get through those fast e-gates.
If IRIS hadn't been working last month at LHR on my return from Tokyo I think I'd probably still be in the immigration queue now.........!

[Darren Wheeler]

My understanding is that IRIS was only ever an interim solution until Biometric passports had been developed

I have a friend who works at UKBA and he has told me that IRIS is on the way out and the e-gates are the way forward - especially with the growth of biometric passports.

Thanks all, yes people were literally flying through with the Biometric passports, so much so it made we want to get one!
The IRIS machine is slow in comparison and also suffered from people obviously not IRIS-registered trying to use it and causing temporary mayhem v( .

Oh dear, that's a bit of a blow to me as I've been using IRIS for the last four years and still have another three years on my current Passport.
Any idea on how long after the Olympics IRIS will continue to operate?

Oh dear, that's a bit of a blow to me as I've been using IRIS for the last four years and still have another three years on my current Passport.
Any idea on how long after the Olympics IRIS will continue to operate?

I'd say it will be gone once the paralympics have finished - so by the end of September. The sooner IRIS goes the sooner they can install more e-gates.

[honey lamb]

Mind you, if you get a quiet time in Border Control the ordinary desks are just as fast if not faster then either IRIS or the E-gates. When I arrived in LHR from DXB last month the place was deserted and I was through before those ahead of me leaving the plane who were queuing at the E-gates

I'm not happy about this, as I trundle off a sociable VS flight, slightly worse for wear, I find squinting in IRIS to be much easier than fumbling with a passport at the egates. That is, if I don't have to wait behind some pillock who can't understand which of the three iris scanners to use.

Overall and more seriously, I find IRIS much quicker and easier, so will be sad to see it go.

[mitchja]

Also not happy about this either. My current passport is also not biometric and doesn't expire until Jan 2015 n(

I'd say it will be gone once the paralympics have finished - so by the end of September

IRIS is targeted for phase-out in October/November, to be timed with an uplift in the number of E-Passport lanes in all terminals.

UKBA is taking the lead on the exact timing, though BAA are pretty much on stream in terms of timescales. E-Passport lanes have proved a great success compared with IRIS, and have a lower failure rate than thier counterparts.

When T2 goes live in May 2014, EU lanes will be 90% E-Passport, with 100% by 2018.

[mitchja]

Still not the best of ideas though to close other options (i.e. IRIS) down whilst there are still a large proportion of non-biometric UK passports still in circulation for at least another 4 years!!!

They could at least add extra UK desks at LHR, especially in T3 How many are there in T3, 4, compared to what, about 40+ foreign passport desks? You don't see that ratio of immigration desks in US airports.

It bloody annoys me having to queue up to get back into my own country.

Still not the best of ideas though to close other options (i.e. IRIS) down whilst there are still a large proportion of non-biometric UK passports still in circulation for at least another 4 years!!!

They could at least add extra UK desks at LHR, especially in T3 How many are there in T3, 4, compared to what, about 40+ foreign passport desks? You don't see that ratio of immigration desks in US airports.

It bloody annoys me having to queue up to get back into my own country.

It's very much up to UKBA on how many immigration desks are open at any one time, and in what configuration - much to the irritation of BAA, particularly given the fact that most people do not draw a distinction between the airport operator and UKBA - they just assume the queues are down to BAA not resourcing the opperations effectively.

IRIS registrations and IRIS controls are being phased out, not binned overnight - as I said in my post, the horizon for delivery of 100% E-borders across all terminals is set for 2018, with scaled introductions starting in October/November.

[Darren Wheeler]

No e-Passport for me for at least another end of October

There is nothing stopping anyone from renewing their passport at any time (it could have 9 years left and you can renew it) so its possible to get an biometric once sooner if you want.

Well, nothing to stop you except a hefty £77.50 fee.......