U.S. Customs and Border Protection will begin collecting photographs and fingerprints from all non-citizens and lawful permanent residents entering or leaving the United States starting December 26, the Department of Homeland Security and an entry in the Federal Register say. The move is part of the implementation of a comprehensive biometric entry/exit system that will also cover seasonal workers and children.
According to the Federal Register notice published by DHS, the new requirement directs CBP officers to take both photographs and fingerprints when processing non-citizens and permanent residents at ports of arrival and departure. The agency described the measure as part of a broader effort to establish a biometric record of who enters and leaves the country. DHS and CBP are the implementing agencies named in the regulatory posting.
Biometric entry and exit systems use unique physical or behavioral characteristics — in this case facial images and fingerprint data — to link people to specific travel events. By recording those identifiers at both arrival and departure, authorities are able to create a biometric trail tied to entry and exit records. The Federal Register publication is the formal step that announces the rule and its effective date, and it provides the administrative basis for CBP officers to begin collecting the data on the December 26 start date.
The requirement explicitly includes populations sometimes handled under different procedures, noting that seasonal workers and children will be subject to the same photographic and fingerprinting processes as other non-citizens and permanent residents. DHS’s notice identifies CBP officers as the personnel responsible for capturing the biometric data as travelers are processed at ports of entry and exit.
The rule as described applies to non-citizens and lawful permanent residents; the Federal Register notice specifies those groups as the subjects of the new biometric collection requirement. The posted rule does not describe requirements for U.S. citizens in the same terms, and the Federal Register entry serves as the authoritative source for the scope and timing of the change.
The December 26 start date marks the launch of what DHS terms a comprehensive entry/exit system, signaling a shift to systematic biometric collection at both arrival and departure. The agency’s publication in the Federal Register indicates the change follows formal rulemaking procedures and sets the date when CBP will operationalize the new processes. As of that date, officers at covered points of processing are scheduled to record the designated biometric identifiers for non-citizens and permanent residents as they enter or depart the United States.
Travelers who are non-citizens or permanent residents and who fall into the categorical groups noted by DHS, including seasonal workers and minors, will be processed under the expanded biometric protocol beginning on the announced effective date. The Federal Register posting functions as the official notification of the implementation and provides the legal notice of when collection will commence.
With the December 26 implementation date approaching, CBP will begin gathering the specified photographic and fingerprint data at processing points designated in the agency’s deployment plans. The Federal Register notice constitutes the formal public record of the change and the operative timeline; travelers with questions about their individual obligations or about where and how the collection will be conducted would find the Federal Register entry and DHS guidance to be the primary sources for official details.