New Delhi: Union Home Minister Amit Shah launched a new initiative on Saturday to expedite the immigration process for pre-verified Indian nationals and Overseas Citizen of India (OCI) cardholders.
"The Fast Track Immigration-Trusted Traveller Programme (FTI-TTP) is a "visionary initiative" of the government, thoughtfully designed for Indian nationals and OCI cardholders," Shah said.
The FTI-TTP is similar to the Global Entry Program offered by the United States that allows expedited clearance for pre-approved, low-risk travellers upon arrival at select US airports," officials said.
Objective
The home minister said the initiative will provide more facilities for the Indian nationals and OCI passengers coming from other countries.
The launch of the programme is one of the key agendas set for "Viksit Bharat by 2047" and reflects the Narendra Modi government's commitment to enhance travel convenience and efficiency for everyone, he added.
Shah said the facility will be available free of cost for all passengers.
Initial Launch at 21 Major Airports
The FTI-TTP will be launched at 21 major airports in the country. In the first phase, along with the Delhi airport, it will be launched at seven major airports -- Mumbai, Chennai, Kolkata, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Kochi and Ahmedabad.
It is designed for faster, smoother and safer immigration clearance for international travellers.
The eligible passengers will be allowed to utilise e-gates and bypass regular immigration queues for a seamless journey.
They will need to apply online and submit their biometrics (fingerprint and facial image), along with other required information as specified in the application form.
The FTI registration will be valid for a maximum of five years or until the validity of the passport, whichever comes first.
A traveller can avail the facility by applying through the government website -- www.ftittp.mha.gov.in -- and providing the required details, which will be verified by the Bureau of Immigration.
The approved applications would receive a message to schedule an appointment for providing their biometric details.
The applicants may provide their biometrics at the designated international airports in India or at the nearest Foreigners Regional Registration Office (FRRO), according to the prior appointment schedule.
Biometrics is compulsory for the completion of the application processing.
The applicants may ensure a minimum passport validity of six months while applying for the FTI-TTP.
The membership of the programmer will be co-terminus with the passport validity.
The programme will run on e-gates or automated border gates, which will minimise human intervention in the immigration-clearance process, according to an official statement.
The programme will be implemented in two phases.
In the first phase, Indian citizens and OCI cardholders will be covered and in the second phase, foreign travellers will be covered.
The objective of the programme is to make international travel easy and secured by developing world-class immigration facilities through an accelerated immigration pathway for international travellers screened through automated gates (e-gates).
