On November 5, 2007 the International Air Transport Association (IATA) stopped providing paper air tickets for ticketing agencies in China as a first step towards creating an exclusively electronic ticket system.

China will become the first country to completely eliminate paper tickets, according to China News Service.

The electronic air tickets, or "e-tickets", are issued using the same purchasing methods as paper tickets. Passengers can buy e-tickets online, over the phone, directly through airline companies, or with ticketing agencies.

Instead of being issued a paper ticket, passengers are provided with the ticket confirmation number and may then obtain their boarding passes at the airport by showing this number along with valid identification. Along with the e-ticket, an official paper receipt may be issued for the purpose of travel reimbursement.

The IATA initiated its plan for paperless e-tickets three years ago, according to which paper tickets will no longer be available anywhere after June 1, 2008. In preparation for the switch, China began promoting e-tickets in October of last year.

According to the IATA, while only 10 percent of Chinese travelers used e-tickets in 2005, by the end of last year the figure had skyrocketed to 90 percent of domestic passengers.

(China.org.cn, by Yang Xi, November 6, 2007)