Will Digital Travel Credentials Replace Passports by 2035, and What Changes First?

Digital Travel Credentials Will Become Common, but Not Universal by 2035

Digital travel credentials are likely to become a mainstream travel option before they replace physical passports. Industry projections cited by Biometric Update anticipate digital travel credentials reaching roughly 1.2 billion users by 2035, while reporting also refers to a broad transition period extending to about 2040. These figures describe an adoption path, not a worldwide legal deadline. Countries will move at different speeds because passports are issued by governments and accepted under bilateral, regional, and international rules. Airlines and border agencies also need compatible scanners, software, and fallback procedures before a digital-only document is practical.

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The realistic first change is duplication, not replacement. Many travellers will carry a phone-based credential alongside a physical passport, just as they currently use digital boarding passes but keep the passport that establishes their identity. Digital credentials are already being designed around the ICAO Digital Travel Credential framework, which supports cryptographically verifiable documents and machine-readable identity data. The World Travel & Tourism Council’s endorsement of ICAO’s Next-Generation Public Key Directory shows why trust infrastructure matters as much as phone design. The near-term question is therefore not whether a digital passport is technically possible, but whether every airline, airport, hotel, and border inspection system can verify it cheaply and quickly.

What Is a Digital Travel Credential, and What Does It Cover?

A digital travel credential is a verifiable electronic representation of information normally found in a physical travel document. It can include a traveller’s name, photograph, nationality, date of birth, document number, and expiry date, depending on the issuing country and document type. Some systems use a chip or secure application; others rely on a digitally signed record stored in a government-controlled or approved wallet. The key distinction is verification: a screenshot of a passport page is not automatically a digital travel credential because it may not prove that the data came from the issuing authority and has not been altered.

The term is often confused with digital identity wallets, airline loyalty profiles, or contactless payments. Those services can support travel, but they do not necessarily function as border-acceptable identity documents. A boarding pass tells the passenger where to go; a digital travel credential may establish who the passenger is. An AI travel booking system can select a flight, check policy rules, and prepare an itinerary, but it cannot substitute for a government-issued document. This separation matters when comparing new travel technology: booking automation affects the pre-trip process, while credentials affect identity checks at check-in, security, immigration, and arrival.

The most credible rollout is likely to begin with government-issued mobile passports and airline-accepted digital copies, rather than private companies creating passports by themselves. The issuer still controls authenticity, and the receiving side must trust the signing or certificate system. Travel companies can improve the surrounding experience by reading credential status, reminding users about expiry, and presenting the right document at check-in, but they should not claim that a commercial profile is equivalent to a passport.

Why Passports Are Unlikely to Disappear by 2035

Physical passports remain useful because they work without electricity, network congestion, or a compatible phone. Border officers can inspect a booklet, compare printed security features, and handle exceptions in ways that are difficult to reproduce on every device. A traveller may also lose a phone, run out of battery, arrive in a country with old inspection equipment, or need a document that does not depend on a particular app vendor. Keeping a physical backup is therefore a practical design choice, not necessarily a rejection of digital credentials.

Legal and administrative requirements also slow replacement. Many countries require specific document formats, machine-readable zones, biometric standards, visa records, and physical validity periods. A digital document can satisfy some of those rules, but issuing authorities must establish identity proofing, revocation procedures, and emergency replacement policies. Existing international arrangements generally took decades to mature, so assuming that every country will adopt a fully interoperable wallet within a few years is optimistic. The 2040 reference point is more plausible as a broad expectation for continued coexistence than as a firm universal cut-off.

There is a further issue: digital credentials can improve convenience while introducing new failure modes. A lost or stolen phone could expose more personal data than a lost passport wallet, and a corrupted profile could prevent boarding even when the physical document is valid. For that reason, major programmes are expected to preserve physical-document fallback. Travellers who want the newest option should treat a digital credential as an additional channel until governments and transport operators confirm that it is accepted for their specific route.

How Verification and AI Booking Fit Together

Verification depends on trusted documents and public-key infrastructure. ICAO’s Public Key Directory, or PKD, helps participating systems exchange information needed to validate digitally signed travel documents and related records. The World Travel & Tourism Council has endorsed the next-generation PKD approach, which is relevant because a credential is only valuable if airlines and border authorities can check its authenticity quickly. AI does not create that trust on its own. An algorithm can read a name or suggest a flight, but it should not decide whether a passport is genuine without connecting to the appropriate verification process.

AI booking assistants will still have a separate role. They can compare dates, airports, baggage rules, prices, and connection options, then pass the selected traveller identity to an approved booking or check-in flow. If a traveller uses a digital credential, the assistant may be able to check whether it is available for the selected airline and route. That integration should be transparent: the traveller should see which data was supplied, whether the document was accepted, and what fallback is required. An assistant that quietly uploads passport data to multiple platforms creates privacy and security exposure without improving the core identity guarantee.

The practical architecture is therefore layered. The booking engine handles itinerary decisions, the airline handles transport rules, and the government or authorized issuer handles identity evidence. Each layer can use software automation, but the authority for identity remains distinct. This division also explains why digital credentials will not make travel booking instantly frictionless. A perfectly planned itinerary can still be delayed by a mismatched name, an expired document, an unaccepted wallet, or a destination that requires additional authorization.

Practical Steps for Travellers and Travel Businesses

Travellers should begin by checking the destination and departure rules rather than downloading an app simply because it is advertised as a digital passport. Confirm whether the airline accepts the credential at the relevant airport, whether the destination recognises it, and whether a physical passport must still be carried. Check the issuing authority’s instructions for offline access, screenshots, device replacement, and recovery. A digital credential is most useful when the traveller has tested it before the trip and can produce the physical document if support staff request it.

A second step is to protect the device. Use the provider’s official application, enable the operating system’s security features, and avoid sending passport images through ordinary messaging apps unless the receiving organisation has a documented process. Do not treat a photograph of a passport as a verified credential. Travellers should also record the document number and expiry date in a secure location, while keeping a separate physical copy of essential itineraries and contact details. Families may need different profiles for adults and children, and travellers should verify whether a child requires a separate document or accompanying-parent record.

Travel businesses should pilot rather than announce universal support. Start with one route, document the verification steps, measure check-in time and exception rates, and test what happens when a phone is offline or a record is revoked. Staff need a manual fallback and a clear way to explain why a credential cannot be used. Businesses should avoid storing more identity data than necessary, especially when a booking system only needs a name, document type, and nationality for a particular transaction. The best early use cases are reminders, eligibility checks, and faster data entry, not attempts to bypass border controls.

Digital Credentials Compared with Passports and Other Alternatives

The table shows why the alternatives are not direct substitutes. A digital credential is an identity document channel, while a passport is the physical fallback and an AI assistant is a planning layer. A traveller may need all three, depending on the route. Businesses that position an AI booking tool as a replacement for a passport misunderstand the compliance requirement and may create confusing checkout experiences.

Common Mistakes and Overstated Expectations

One common mistake is assuming that a digital passport is accepted everywhere because it appears in a government app. Acceptance can depend on the issuing country, destination, airline, airport, and document version. Another is treating any digital image as a credential without checking its signature or source. Screenshot-based copies may help a human agent but are not equivalent to a cryptographically verifiable document. A third mistake is confusing a projected user count with active border acceptance. Reaching 1.2 billion users by 2035 could involve millions of domestic or regional journeys, not universal replacement of international passports.

Businesses also make the mistake of promising a seamless journey before completing security reviews. Combining a passport image, a stored face image, travel history, and payment details in one profile can simplify login while increasing the impact of a data breach. AI recommendations can also be wrong when the model receives an outdated document name or fails to account for visa requirements. Clear validation messages and human review are more reliable than a confident-looking answer.

The concept of “passportless travel” can itself create confusion. It may mean no physical booklet, no printed boarding pass, or simply fewer data-entry screens. Those are different outcomes. Until legal and technical frameworks are aligned, the safe interpretation is that digital credentials will reduce repetitive form entry and speed some checks, while physical documents remain available for exceptions and international compatibility.

When Should Travellers or Companies Act, and What Might It Cost?

Individuals should act before 2035 if they travel frequently, use mobile banking or digital identity services, or want to understand how to manage a document on a new phone. There is no need to replace a valid passport solely for marketing reasons. Instead, travellers can test official tools during a low-stakes trip, confirm that the destination accepts them, and keep a fallback. Businesses with high transaction volumes should act sooner because integration, staff training, and security reviews take time. A useful pilot might test one airline, one airport, and a limited customer group before expanding access.

There is no single global price for a digital travel credential. Government-issued mobile documents may be available at no additional charge, while private wallet services, identity-verification checks, or developer integrations can carry fees. Airlines may absorb costs in standard check-in, bundle them into a service, or pass them to customers, but the market has not established one universal model. Customers should therefore compare the total cost of obtaining and keeping the credential against the time saved. If a service requires a subscription, stores unnecessary identity data, or does not explain how a lost device is handled, convenience may not justify the expense.

For AI booking tools, free entry-level search is common, while automated itinerary support, premium planning, or concierge services may be paid. A fair comparison should include privacy terms, cancellation policies, support quality, and the cost of correcting a booking error. The cheapest tool is not necessarily the most useful if it cannot explain why a flight was selected or cannot hand off an unresolved issue to a person. Digital credentials are best treated as one component in a wider travel technology strategy rather than as a reason to buy every advertised feature.

The Most Credible 2035-to-2040 Adoption Path

The strongest evidence points to gradual expansion: projected digital-credential use on a scale of 1.2 billion users by 2035, continued government control over passports, and persistent physical-document support as systems mature. ICAO-linked infrastructure matters because international travel requires trust between organizations, not just a polished mobile interface. WTTC support for the next-generation PKD indicates an effort to improve that shared infrastructure, but endorsement does not guarantee that every country or airline will implement it on the same date.

The first visible changes are likely to be behind the scenes. Airlines may pre-read data from an approved credential, reduce manual entry, and warn passengers about expiry. Airports may offer credential-checking lanes, while hotels may accept a digital identity signal for eligible services. Travellers may still carry a passport, but they might use the phone for checks, updates, and document presentation. Eventually, some domestic or regional journeys may operate fully digitally, while high-security and international routes retain more conservative requirements.

For an AI Travel Booking Specialist perspective, the opportunity is coordination rather than pretending to replace identity authorities. The assistant can help a traveller compare routes, check whether a document is expected, prepare a booking, and explain fallback options. It should not invent an accepted digital passport, weaken identity checks, or collect data without clear permission. The destination is more practical: fewer repetitive interactions, better preparation, and clearer errors. If those benefits arrive alongside strong verification and a physical backup, digital travel credentials could become ordinary by 2035 without making passports disappear by the same date.