Passport to funds: why one bank is changing ID rules

One of Australia’s biggest banks will no longer require several identity documents every time you open an account after a technology change.

The Commonwealth Bank on Tuesday revealed plans to permanently accept e-passport scans in its mobile app to establish bank accounts quickly.

The change, which uses near-field communication to scan the passport’s encrypted chip, has been tested since January, with more than 2700 people signing up for accounts using their passports.

The change would help take some paperwork out of managing finances, Commonwealth Bank customer identity and digital security general manager Sascha Thiel said, and would make the institution the first Australian bank to do so.

“It speeds things up because we’re now allowing customers to join using one single document type, so they can join the bank in as little as one minute,” she said.

“Historically, we’ve needed multiple forms of identity documents.”

Potential customers must also scan their face using their phone to ensure it matches the photo stored in the passport’s chip.

The feature is available to e-passport holders from any nation as long as they are in Australia when they apply for an account.

The scheme will be expanded to people outside the country, Ms Thiel said, including international students looking to establish finances before their arrival.

“Later this year, we are looking to support customers migrating into Australia to complete the onboarding process before they arrive,” she said.

“One of the first administrative hurdles when people are moving countries is how do I open a bank account … so this is another way that will help them settle into life in Australia.”

Australia became one of the first countries to introduce biometric passports, known as e-passports, in October 2005.

More than 180 nations have since adopted the technology, which includes an encrypted computer chip that can be scanned at close range.