Iceland Police and Keflavik International Airport: Leaders in the implementation of the European Entry/Exit System

Security and convenience at the heart of the Icelandic project

By 2022, new EU-EES regulations will require that biometric data, including face and fingerprints, of Third Country Nationals (TCNs) be captured and identified at the Schengen Area’s external borders. This will affect border check processes for all Schengen Member States.

With a yearly air traffic growth of 20 per cent (prior to COVID-19), Iceland planned to implement a program to manage increased passenger flows primarily in Iceland’s main international airport Keflavik, where 95 per cent of the country’s largely non-EU arriving and exiting passengers pass, and also in the country’s 30 seaports defined as external sea border crossing points. The new border management systems and equipment will also contribute to inland control within the Schengen Area.

Iceland’s innovation partner in border management, IDEMIA, will leverage its best-in-class biometric and border control expertise to uphold and upgrade Iceland’s border security. Meanwhile, this cutting-edge technology will contribute to more secured external borders and optimise the passenger flow by the use of the newest technology in border management.

This new border management system, based on IDEMIA’s Augmented Borders™ solution, will be compliant with EU-EES regulations. IDEMIA will also equip Icelandic border crossing points with its TravelKiosk™ EU-EES, the latest generation of user-centric multi-biometric border self-service kiosks. Also including automated TraveLane™ eGates, the entire system will boost throughput and convenience of passengers as they go through border controls.

Lastly, to complete this end-to-end solution, IDEMIA will ensure that operator-manned counters, mobile solutions and tracking systems are set up to fit the requirements of the Icelandic police with a view to shortening response times and improving coordination.

Keynote speakers

Jan Willem Ter Hennepe, Business Development Manager Border Control Europe at IDEMIA

Border Control involves many stakeholders, each with their specific interests. The current implementation of EU’s Entry/Exit System requires customised solutions at local, national and supranational level, with a need for high quality biometrics and traveller-centric solutions. In a consultative capacity for border control solutions at IDEMIA, Jan Willem brings a broad experience and understanding of actual passenger processes to the table to align those different needs with solutions.
Prior to his current position, Jan Willem held various positions in IDEMIA for Passenger Flow Facilitation and worldwide sales of e-Passports and e-ID cards. During a temporary posting in Colombia, he supported IDEMIA’s security document activities in Latin America and the Caribbean. Before that, with the development of e-passports, Jan Willem was global Business Development Manager for the often-customised integration of passport chip reader/writers serving both Government Printing Houses and industry.

Jón Pétur Jónsson, Chief Superintendent at the National Police Commissioner of the Icelandic Police (NPIC)

1984 started as a Police Officer at the general division in Keflavik District. In 2001, he took part in the establishment of the border control division at Keflavik International Airport and was appointed as head of the division from 2004 until 2017. Was appointed as a border management specialist at the Ministry of Justice from 2017 to 2019. From 2019 until now has been the head of the border management department at the NPIC.

Guðmundur Karl Gautason, Director of Business Insight and Customer Excellence at ISAVIA

Gudmundur Karl has been working for Isavia for 10 years in various roles, most of which relating to improving flow in the terminal and capacity planning. Gudmundur Karl is currently the Director of Business Insight and Customer Excellence at Keflavik International Airport leading a team of experts in improving passenger processing points as well as supporting the company on collecting, analysing and using data to improve decision making. Gudmundur Karl holds a master’s degree in engineering management.