What challenges do countries face in replacing physical passports with mobile versions?

1. Technology and interoperability: the hardware and standards gap

Moving to mobile passports is not just an app; it needs border-point equipment and ICAO‑aligned standards so different countries can read and trust digital credentials. Reporting notes that adoption “adheres to International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) standards” and depends on specialized biometric scanners and kiosks, meaning countries must invest in compatible hardware and back-end systems to achieve cross‑border compatibility ^[1]. If one country upgrades while its neighbours don’t, travellers still need physical documents.

2. Security trade-offs: biometric promise versus new attack surfaces

Digital passports promise stronger authentication via biometrics and stored electronic credentials, but they also create concentrated attack surfaces: mobile storage, central issuance systems and border-control components must all be hardened. Analyses of the “security triad” for Digital Travel Credentials highlight that mobile, central and border-control components each must be secured to prevent fraud or data breaches — a non‑trivial task for states with limited cybersecurity capacity ^{[2] [1]}.

3. Operational friction: system reliability, backlogs and change management

Governments already struggle with passport processing backlogs and IT outages, and digitisation can both help and complicate operations. The U.S. Government Accountability Office flagged technology challenges during online passport pilots and database outages as contributors to delays, illustrating how immature IT launches can create new bottlenecks rather than eliminate them ^[5]. Replacing physical passports requires carefully staged pilots and contingency plans so system failures don’t strand travellers.

4. Infrastructure and cost: investment versus capacity

Countries must buy scanners, update border‑control kiosks, train staff, and maintain high‑availability back‑end systems. Reporting on global e‑passport efforts stresses that effective mobile passport programmes depend on specialized equipment and robust storage and verification infrastructures — a significant upfront and recurring cost that will be harder for lower‑resourced governments to absorb ^[1].

5. Legal, privacy and data‑governance dilemmas

Beyond technology, nations need legal frameworks to govern issuance, cross‑border data sharing, retention, and privacy protections. Digital passport programmes rely on coordinated policies across “mobile, central, and border control components” to define who controls data and how long it’s stored; without clear laws and agreements, countries risk privacy violations and diplomatic friction ^{[2] [1]}. Available sources do not mention specific national laws enacted to solve these issues.

6. Equity and access: the smartphone divide

Surveys show travelers overwhelmingly want mobile capabilities, yet reliance on smartphones risks excluding people who lack devices, have low digital literacy, or face roaming/connectivity costs. Industry reporting highlights travellers’ appetite for mobile wallets and digital IDs (78% preference), but also cautions that physical passports remain mandatory for many cross‑border journeys during transition periods — an implicit acknowledgement that universal access remains a concern ^{[4] [3]}.

7. Adoption dynamics: pilots, vendor ecosystems and vendor lock‑in

Several countries and vendors are piloting mobile solutions (Finland cited as an example), and industry actors like SITA are promoting solutions — but that ecosystem raises questions about fragmentation and vendor lock‑in. Global e‑passport reporting emphasizes pilots and vendor-driven innovation, implying that interoperability and open standards must be enforced to avoid a patchwork of incompatible systems ^[1]. Different vendor implementations could slow international acceptance.

8. Traveller experience and residual risks: convenience vs contingency

Mobile passports can speed checkpoints and reduce paperwork, as seen with Mobile Passport Control apps and early digital-ID uses at TSA checkpoints; yet analysts warn losing phone access, theft, or app failures can still derail travel. Practical guidance from travel‑industry coverage underscores that even as wallets adopt digital ID, physical passports remain necessary for many journeys during the transition ^{[3] [1]}.

9. What proponents and critics emphasize

Proponents — airlines, IATA and many travellers — point to convenience and a future where phones manage booking, payment and identity, backed by survey data showing strong passenger demand ^[4]. Critics and cautious implementers highlight technical, legal and equity constraints; reporting on adoption stresses the need for pilots, standards and equipment, not just consumer apps ^{[1] [2]}.

10. Bottom line for policymakers

Countries can modernize travel identity only by coordinating on ICAO‑aligned standards, investing in border infrastructure and cybersecurity, drafting cross‑border legal agreements, and running robust pilots that preserve physical‑document fallbacks for those excluded by technology. The industry appetite is clear, but the practical, legal and equity obstacles documented in contemporary reporting mean full replacement of physical passports will be gradual and uneven across regions ^{[1] [4] [2]}.