How border system deals are paid for
Governments pay for immigration, passenger-data and airport security systems in a handful of ways. The model shapes who carries the cost, who owns the system, and what a contract needs to say about data and handover. Each entry in the register is filed under one of these models.
State budget
The government pays from its own budget, through a normal procurement. The state usually owns the system from the start and pays the vendor for delivery and maintenance.
- SmartGate arrivals and departures programmeAustralia · Departures: Vision-Box, now part of Amadeus. Arrivals: IDEMIA (Morpho) fleet, as reported
- ArriveCAN applicationCanada · Several contractors, including GC Strategies
- Entry/Exit System (EES)European Union · Development and maintenance: consortium led by Sword Services Greece with Netcompany and Sopra Steria (contract ranked first under eu-LISA's Dynamic Purchasing System, company statement 4 June 2026)
- Digital Services at the Border (DSAB) programmeUnited Kingdom · Home Office in-house delivery approach adopted in 2014 (suppliers not named in the sources reviewed)
- e-Borders programmeUnited Kingdom · Raytheon Systems Limited
- Homeland Advanced Recognition Technology (HART)United States · Northrop Grumman (systems developer and integrator)
Passenger or user fee
Travellers pay a fee, often collected by airlines inside the ticket or at the airport, and part or all of it goes to the vendor to recover its investment and running costs. The share kept by the state and the share paid to the vendor are set in the contract.
- Electronic Travel Authorization (eTA)Canada · Not published
- Biometric passport productionDemocratic Republic of the Congo · Semlex
- Integrated security and immigration management systemDemocratic Republic of the Congo · Securiport
- European Travel Information and Authorisation System (ETIAS)European Union · Not published
- eCitizen government payment platform and Electronic Travel AuthorisationKenya · Webmasters Kenya Limited in consortium with Pesaflow Limited and Olive Tree Media Limited
- Airport biometrics and passenger data proposalPakistan · Securiport
- Civil Aviation and Immigration Security Services (CAISS) public-private partnership proposalPhilippines · Securiport
- Biometric entry visa production concessionSenegal · SNEDAI
- Integrated immigration control system at international airportsSenegal · Securiport LLC (local company Securiport Sénégal SUARL)
- Airport security fee and border security services at Freetown International AirportSierra Leone · Securiport (SL) Limited
- Civil aviation and immigration security services at Banjul International AirportThe Gambia · Securiport
- Electronic Travel Authorisation (ETA)United Kingdom · Not published
- CBP Biometric Entry-Exit (air exit facial recognition)United States · Not published. CBP works with airline and airport partners for gate-level capture (GAO)
Concession or PPP
A private partner finances, builds and runs the system for a fixed period under a public-private partnership or concession, then hands it to the state. Names for this include build-operate-transfer and design-build-finance-maintain-transfer. Payment can come from fees, from the state, or both.
- Global Digital Platform visa processing tenderAustralia · No contract awarded. Bidders: Australian Visa Processing (a consortium including PwC, Ellerston Capital, Qantas Ventures, NAB and Pacific Blue Capital) and Australia Post with Accenture
- Ghana Card national identification systemGhana · Identity Management Systems (IMS), a subsidiary of the Margins Group
- Digi Yatra facial recognition boardingIndia · Digi Yatra Foundation (joint venture). Technology supplier not confirmed. The AAI DigiYatra presentation to ICAO carries SITA copyright footers
- Immigration Control System at seven international airportsIndonesia · PT Securiport International Indonesia (project enterprise), Securiport Limited Liability Company (MIGA guarantee holder)
- Concession for a civil aviation and immigration security systemMali · Sécuriport LLC
- National ID system and integrated digital ID systemThe Gambia · Margins ID Group
Development bank loan
A development bank lends to the government, which then buys the system. Bank rules on procurement and audit usually apply.
Grant
A donor government or international body pays for the system, often with conditions on how it is bought and used.
Mixed
More than one of the models above, for example state funding for set-up and fees for running costs.
Not published
No official or reliable source states how the deal is paid for.
- Electronic passports and border control systemsBangladesh · Veridos GmbH (joint venture of Giesecke+Devrient and Bundesdruckerei)
- Integrated border management network proposalBangladesh · Securiport
- Civil aviation and immigration security system (CAISS) at Cotonou and Tourou airportsBenin · Securiport LLC
- Civil aviation and immigration security services at M'Poko International AirportCentral African Republic · Securiport
- Border security systems under a build, maintain and transfer contractEquatorial Guinea · Securiport
- Shared Biometric Matching System (sBMS)European Union · IDEMIA and Sopra Steria consortium
- Automated facial recognition gates at airportsJapan · Panasonic Corporation
- Maisha Namba unique personal identifier and digital IDKenya · Not published
- Passport issuance system upgrade and e-passportMalawi · Techno Brain
- E-passport booklet production and issuance systemNigeria · Iris Smart Technologies Limited
- e-Visa Application System and Automated Landing and Exit CardNigeria · Not published
- Airport e-gates programmeSaudi Arabia · Not published
- New Clearance Concept and passport-less clearanceSingapore · Not published
- Dubai airports smart gates and biometric passport controlUnited Arab Emirates · Not published
Questions worth asking of any deal
- Was it bought through an open tender, a restricted tender, a direct award or an unsolicited proposal?
- If travellers pay a fee, how much is it, who collects it, and how is it split between the state and the vendor?
- Who owns the system, and when and how does it pass to the state?
- Where is traveller data stored, who controls it, and who can see it?
- Has a supreme audit institution, parliament, court or regulator reviewed it, and what did it find?
The register records the answer to each of these where an official or reliable source gives one, and says so when none does.