The Trump administration intends to propose a regulation next year that would require all travelers - including Americans- to be photographed when entering or leaving the United States.
The regulation, slated to be issued in July by the Homeland Security Department, would be part of a broader system to track travelers as they enter and exit the US.
The regulation, slated to be issued in July by the Homeland Security Department, would be part of a broader system to track travelers as they enter and exit the US.
The Trump administration contends, in its regulatory agenda, that the face scan requirement will combat the fraudulent use of U.S. travel documents and aid the identification of criminals and suspected terrorists.
The Trump administration also said in its regulatory agenda that it plans to issue a separate fast-track regulation this month that would allow the entry-exit project to move beyond a pilot status.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection, which is part of the Department of Homeland Security, has already conducted pilot programs that collect photographs and fingerprints from foreign travelers.
A 2018 internal audit found technical and operational problems during a pilot programme at nine U.S. airports.
The problems raised questions about whether the Department of Homeland Security would meet a self-imposed deadline to confirm all foreign departures at the top 20 U.S. airports by 2021.
A non-partisan American think tank, based in Washington, D.C., the Pew Research Center, estimated in 2006 that 45 percent of immigrants in the United States without legal status entered on a valid visa but did not depart when it expired.
The proposed plan has already drawn opposition from some privacy advocates.
A senior policy analyst with the American Civil Liberties Union, Jay Stanley, blasted the idea in a written statement.
He said travelers, including U.S. citizens, should not have to submit to invasive biometric scans simply as a condition of exercising their constitutional right to travel.
The Trump administration also said in its regulatory agenda that it plans to issue a separate fast-track regulation this month that would allow the entry-exit project to move beyond a pilot status.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection, which is part of the Department of Homeland Security, has already conducted pilot programs that collect photographs and fingerprints from foreign travelers.
A 2018 internal audit found technical and operational problems during a pilot programme at nine U.S. airports.
The problems raised questions about whether the Department of Homeland Security would meet a self-imposed deadline to confirm all foreign departures at the top 20 U.S. airports by 2021.
A non-partisan American think tank, based in Washington, D.C., the Pew Research Center, estimated in 2006 that 45 percent of immigrants in the United States without legal status entered on a valid visa but did not depart when it expired.
The proposed plan has already drawn opposition from some privacy advocates.
A senior policy analyst with the American Civil Liberties Union, Jay Stanley, blasted the idea in a written statement.
He said travelers, including U.S. citizens, should not have to submit to invasive biometric scans simply as a condition of exercising their constitutional right to travel.
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