Travelling to the U.S.? Expect to be photographed upon entry and exit

Under new regulations from the United States Department of Homeland Security (DHS) that came into effect on Friday, all non-U.S. citizens should now expect to be photographed before entering and leaving the country.

A DHS regulation announced at the end of October authorizes U.S. Customs and Border Protection to collect facial biometrics from all non-U.S. citizens entering and leaving the country. It is mandatory for travellers to comply. The new regulation removes prior exemptions that included diplomats and most Canadian visitors.

The DHS said the initiative, which involves the use of facial recognition technology matching live images of travellers with government records at all entry and exit points, is needed to address national security concerns and enables Customs and Border Protection “to identify criminals and known or suspected terrorists; prevent visa fraud and the use of fraudulent documents; detect overstays and non-citizens present in the United States without proper admission or parole; and prevent illegal re-entry of previously removed individuals.”

U.S. citizens are not covered by the rule.

Customs and Border Protection has been collecting biometric data from some non-citizens on their arrival in the U.S. since 2004, but the new regulation marks a significant expansion of this data collection.

The regulation applies to airports, land ports and seaports, and expands biometric collection to travel modes including private aircraft, entry and exit by vehicle and pedestrian exit. The rollout will be gradual and is expected to take three to five years to be completed.

Some critics are concerned that the data, to be kept by the DHS for up to 75 years, could be used to track journalists or political opponents. The DHS says “the biometric entry-exit system is not a surveillance program.”

Canadians staying in the U.S. for more than 30 days, including snowbirds, must already comply with fingerprinting and registration requirements.

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