Facial Recognition for Everyone: US Tightens Border Controls

The US government has announced an expansion of facial recognition screening requirements for non-US citizens entering and exiting the country, set to take full effect on December 26, 2025.

Under the new regulation, immigrants, green card holders, and visa holders will all be required to have their photos taken at airports, seaports, and land border crossings during both arrival and departure.

This initiative, led by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and US Customs and Border Protection (CBP), is designed to tighten border security, prevent visa overstays, and identify fraudulent entries.

Unlike prior policies, which exempted certain groups, such as children under 14 and adults over 79, this new rule eliminates these exemptions, requiring nearly all non-citizens to undergo facial recognition checks.

Facial recognition technology will automatically match each traveler’s image to government records and verify their identity against entry and exit databases.

Recently, the European Union replaced passport stamps with biometric border checks, introducing the new Entry/Exit System (EES), which is also designed to track non-EU visitors and help prevent identity fraud and overstays.

Photo by Eli Monjaras on Unsplash