Ryanair has announced that it will be delaying its planned major boarding pass change. The airline had announced that it planned to change its previous boarding pass options to a digital-only system. To avoid chaos amid the busy summer season, the airline decided that the new system will come into place at the start of Ryanair’s winter schedule, beginning on 3 Nov 2025.
The New Digital-Only Boarding Pass System
The new boarding pass system means that Ryanair passengers will no longer be able to download and print physical paper boarding passes. Travellers will have access to their boarding pass downloaded into their “myRyanair” app after check-in. This new initiative will save travellers money, as it will allow Ryanair to eliminate almost all airport check-in fees.
There are many benefits the new Ryanair boarding pass system. Digital boarding passes will be better for the environment, helping customers reduce their carbon footprint by eliminating unnecessary paper. This is expected to save over 300 tonnes of paper waste each year.
Customers will be encouraged to use the “myRyanair” app, which also provides many different benefits to customers. The app has a range of useful in-app features to enhance the flight experience. Some of the most-used features are, live flight information and updates; terminal, gate, and boarding status updates and all travel documents accessible in one place. In cases of flight disruptions customers can use the app to get direct updates from Ryanair’s operations centre and real-time alternative flight options during disruptions
Ryanair CMO, Dara Brady, has commented on the new initiative, saying
“This move to 100% paperless boarding passes from November 2025 will allow us to deliver an enhanced travel experience for customers, streamlined through the myRyanair app during our less busy winter schedule. This will be particularly useful to passengers during disruptions, as it will facilitate real-time updates from our Ops Centre directly to passengers’ phones, will also provide them with alternative flight options, and will offer transfers or hotel accommodation options when necessary.”
How Will This Affect Customers?
The new system will not impact a large majority of Ryanair’s passengers as almost 80% of its 200 million customers already prefer to use a digital boarding pass.
There is a risk that this change will lead to confusion for some passengers. Specifically those who are not familiar with digital systems or are uncomfortable using electronics in general. Another common issue regarding digital boarding passes is that phones may malfunction, die during boarding, or get lost or stolen. However, Ryanair assures passengers that if they have previously checked in and downloaded a boarding pass, its staff will assist them free of charge if technical issues prevent them from presenting their boarding pass.
What do you think about the new Ryanair boarding pass system? Let us know in the comments below
