Hamad International Airport plans to add 20 more e-gates this year after an agreement with the Ministry of Interior's Passport Department to accommodate passenger demand, said HIA chief operating officer Badr al-Meer.

“The provision of e-gates has been a big achievement for the airport and welcomed by both Qataris and expatriates,” al-Meer told Gulf Times.
The airport currently has 40 automated border control e-gates that allow enrolled nationals and permanent residents to swiftly pass through departure and arrival immigration process based on biometric and travel document verification, he said. 
Al-Meer informed that as many as 2.46mn passengers used the e-gates at HIA last year, including 1.28mn arrivals to the country and 1.18mn departures from the country, while in 2016, a total of 1.41mn passengers had used the facility.
Having introduced the e-gate facility in 2014, HIA has seen the number of e-gate users almost double in 2017 compared to the preceding year due to the increase in demand since the service was made free and available to most expats in 2017.
“HIA is a state-of-the-art airport with a strong focus on technology-enabled innovation, as per their ‘Smart Airport’ vision,” al-Meer noted.
The Airport Passport Department has also opened an office next to the e-gates to activate and add the gate system service by means of a personal identification card to residents and their children of over 18 years of age, he said. 
“Our overarching goal is to provide innovative passenger processing solutions at the airport in a fast, secure and reliable way and e-gate has achieved just that in the short time that it has been operational,” adds al-Meer.
Hamad International Airport is currently one of the best airports in the world in terms of passenger amenities and connectivity.