DHS Revives Biometric Data Collection Rule for Non-Citizens

US Customs and Border Protection plans to reissue regulations creating a system for tracking biometric data of people entering and leaving the US, including use of facial recognition technology.

The Department of Homeland Security sent the new measure to the White House Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (RIN: 1651-AB12) for review Wednesday. It would be issued as an interim final rule, allowing it to take effect immediately.

DHS advances the rule as it takes a number of steps to expand the data at its disposal for tracking and detaining immigrants in the US. It’s sought access to individuals’ data from multiple federal agencies, including the Internal Revenue Service and the Department of Health and Human Services, to aid immigration enforcement. US Citizenship and Immigration Services has also reportedly increased requests for biometric data from H-1B specialty occupation workers when businesses file to renew an employee’s H-1B status or submit petitions to sponsor them for green cards.

The new regulation appears to revive a proposal from the first Trump administration that would have mandated that all non-citizens be photographed upon entry or exit.

Current rules allow the DHS to require certain non-citizens to provide biometric data but limit the data collection to certain populations leaving from specific air and seaports.

The 2020 proposal would have created a framework for a comprehensive system for collection the information. It was opposed in public comments by civil rights groups like the The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, who said the technology was prone to error and contributes to the over criminalization of people of color.

Another Trump regulation by US Citizenship and Immigration Services to expand biometric data collection, including DNA, from people seeking immigrant benefits was shelved by the Biden administration in 2021.