Passport data entered by phone app scan
 

And successfully used the passport scanning feature?

I've tried every which way and it doesn't seem to want to read the old-style (non-biometric) passport. It keeps giving an error during the "up-to-5-minute" upload process.

So annoying that this "great" new feature that UA touts being the first to introduce deleted our stored passport data. :mad:

Mine (2006, old style, even a little battered) works fine. Perhaps higher resolution of iPhone 6 camera?

You know the app doesn't read any of the biometric data from the chip, right?

The old stored passport data never worked reliably, even after repeated kiosk swipes. Too bad they added a new broken way instead of doing away with the stupid requirement.

Time to upgrade to the PMUA system - check it at the gate! Oh right, they already do that too. :rolleyes:

Yup, my spouse has an old-style passport. Worked perfectly with his old iPhone 5 when we traveled a couple of months ago.

Probably just a temporary server glitch in your case. Never any fun to hear, but better than a widespread problem.

The app should read any passport with the machine readable zone on the bottom. As long as there is no glare and no major creases to obscure the text, it should work. I can see swiping the passport becoming problematic considering it's magnetic ink for the text.

Passport data entered by phone app scan
 

For the past two days I have tried to enter my renewed passport number and expiration date into my U/A profile. My profile only shows my "known traveler" number but there is no information about my passport.

I called U/A technical and was told that my passport data is visible to them, on their system.

Thinking the problem might be related to the browser I was using, I tried three different browsers but I still cannot access the stored passport information.

I called U/A technical again about the missing passport data. Technical offered to manually make the change in my passport number and expiration date. I was assured that my passport changes are now in my profile even though they still do not show in my profile on united.com.

If the passport data is not correct, TSA precheck can be negatively affected.

Is anyone out here able to access stored passport information using united.com?

Thanks -

That can't be correct.

The info. that goes to TSA for Secure Flight most definitely does not include passport info - that is what they match to for Precheck. Don't know if this list is 100% complete, but believe for Secure Flight, they require name, gender and DOB (and of course, trusted traveller (PassID) number or Redress number, if applicable). Don't think they need anything else - when coming through the checkpoint, your name on the ID you use is supposed to match exactly with what they have on file through Secure Flight, and if the name on your TT card is different than the one you have on your ticket, yes, that can cause problems with getting precheck.

But that's different than passport. Plus, if they required passport info., millions of people who travel domestically wouldn't be able to do so without having a passport, and there are lots who don't.

I have been tripped up by this issue -- nearly missed an international flight because I was not allowed to check in online with a new passport. This was before they had the "take a photo of your passport" option on the app.

The system may not be able to accept a new passport number as "trusted" until an agent physically swipes the document or it is seen "in person" via the app.

I would suggest simply telling the system that you are on your old passport (if the date is still valid), and then at the airport, updating the passport details at the kiosk or with an agent.

It is probably not worth trying to fix this in advance. Far more trouble.

Same here - I received a new official passport and went to the site to update my profile. The passport information simply isn't there any more. I'm sure it's still stored in the system, but the user interface where you used to add and change passport is simply gone.

The only way it can be done is by scanning it at the airport or by taking a photo of it at checkin using the United app..then once it's done you won't have to do it again (in most cases).

I just got a new passport and I will just have to do that for my next international flight.. no big deal. Before you could do it on your phone it was a big deal if you were going for a day of departure upgrade and needed the time of check-in tie breaker. You can't get on the upgrade list until the passport is scanned. But the app works great.

That is the confusing part - as you wrote, the passport information is not there.

However, if you talk with U/A technical, they say the passport shows on U/A's system.

I had no trouble changing my passport data online with Delta, AA and Koreanair.

It is comforting to read that I am not alone in having no access to the portion of U/A's site that will allow an update to my renewed passport. I thought the problem was with my computer or browser, but it isn't.

One does have to wonder why other airlines have the option to update a passport renewal online while U/A doesn't offer that feature to its customers.
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You are absolutely correct. I had not thought of that. Of course, when I travel domestically, I do not use a passport and my ticket shows TSA Precheck.

The bulk of my travel is international where I need a passport. Thus, I just assumed that Precheck had something to do with correct passport information. The "trusted traveler" information does show on my profile with united.com, it is the passport information that is missing.

Thanks for jarring me back to my senses.
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This happened in the past couple weeks. I just renewed my passport and was able to update the information on .bomb but now there is no way to access it.

It was always hard to find and at first I just assumed I was looking in the wrong place, but it seems to be gone completely.

Is this a new security feature? Wouldn't it be nice if they posted a notice instead of driving us all crazy looking for something that used to be there!

Please tell me that the new ability to scan from the App is an additional option and not in lieu of using the stored information, reducing us to a lifetime of repeatedly scanning the passport before every single INTL flight, when I usually don't even have it with me 24 hours before the flight!

Or at a minimum, train your staff to correctly answer the questions of the United international fliers who think to proactively address this....

Hello,

The quickest way to update passport information is through the United App during check-in for an international flight, as we have removed the passport data field from MileagePlus profiles on united.com. When you have a stored passport on the App, you will be asked to confirm that you are traveling with that passport. If travel documents have changed, you can choose to replace the existing passport or add a new passport (there is a limit of two stored passports). After selecting to replace or add a new passport, you will be prompted to accept the Passport Storage Terms. The application will then allow you to take a photo of the picture page of your passport. Once the validation process has been successfully completed, the check-in process can continue with the newly scanned passport. Hope this helps.

Thank you,

-UA Insider