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New Zealand opens eGates for travellers to South Island

Xinhua, June 21, 2016 Adjust font size:

New eGates started to run for New Zealand, Australian, US, UK and Canadian ePassport holders travelling to Queenstown, which is one of the most popular kiwi attractions for global tourists in the South Island, said New Zealand Customs Minister Nicky Wagner on Tuesday.

According to Wagner, among the six new next-generation eGates, four gates are available on arrival and two on departure, giving travelers the option of completing Customs checks using the one-step electronic process.

Queenstown is famous of its skiing sites in winters of the Southern Hemisphere. This year, the international capacity of Queenstown airport scheduled to increase by 14 percent compared to last winter. Approximately 60 percent of the predicted 180,000 international travelers visiting Queenstown between July and September are likely going through the new eGates.

"The government's 6.6 million NZ dollars (4.69 U.S. dollars) investment in expanding and modernizing automated passport processing will help manage growth in traveler volumes by allowing legitimate passengers to complete Customs checks easily, and enabling Customs officers to focus on high risk travelers," said Wagner.

To boost Queenstown tourism, New Zealand government last month approved to run night flight in Queenstown airport. The first international night flight from Melbourne is due to land this Friday.

Wagner said the New Zealand government will also install the next generation eGates at Wellington and Christchurch airports. Endit