Starting in March 2024, the sunny island of Aruba is doing away with physical passports altogether for travelers from many nations, including the United States.
Last year, Aruba launched a pilot program for their Aruba Happy One Pass (AHOP), and it appears to be set to fully take effect in less than two months.
According to Aruban news outlets, AHOP is an app that will convert all physical entry paperwork, including passports, into digital credentials. All you’ll have to do is upload your information to AHOP to get verified, after which no physical entry credentials are required.
Of course, this means that you do still need a passport to travel to Aruba, just not a physical one. Once you’ve been verified by AHOP you can feel free to leave your passport at home so long as you don’t need it to enter another country on your trip.
This is advantageous because it eliminates the chance of your passport getting lost while traveling or winding up without enough blank pages left on it for an entry stamp.
And Aruba isn’t the only destination that’s going digital. Dubai in the United Arab Emirates has started a similar pilot program. The idea is that these digital pre-verification apps will help expedite entry into foreign countries, which is good for travelers, and increase security for the country itself, which is good for everyone.
However, please keep in mind that even if you’re allowed to enter your destination country without a physical passport, you may still need one to return to your country of residence. It will likely be many years before the majority of countries convert to digital passport acceptance.
Aruba Travel Insurance
Even if you can leave your passport at home when visiting Aruba, there’s still one thing you should bring along on every trip: Travel insurance.
A travel medical insurance plan can help protect your finances if you get sick or become injured while visiting another country where your domestic health insurance will not be accepted. The right plan will allow you to get the best care available for a price you can manage.