Biometric Passport Deadline Extended

Visa Waiver travelers have another year before the requirement to have biometric passports takes effect. By October 26, 2005, all newly issued passports must be biometrically enabled. The extension was needed to prevent possible international travel disruptions. The extension was also necessary to allow sufficient time for development of more secure, biometrically enabled passports.

The Department of Homeland Security will start enrolling Visa Waiver Program travelers through the US-VISIT program (U.S. Visitor & Immigrant Status Indicator Technology) at seaports and airports on September 30, 2004, due to security concerns related to this extension. US-VISIT enables the U.S. to facilitate legitimate travel while continuing its efforts to improve border security. In addition to a digital photograph, the US-VISIT system requires two digital index finger scans to verify the identity of the traveler.

On October 26, 2004, the second Visa Waiver Program requirement will take effect. All passports used for travel in the Visa Waiver Program are required to be machine-readable as of that date. The Secretary of State granted an extension last year and Visa Waiver Program travelers from 21 countries must possess and present machine-readable passports in order to be granted admission to the U.S without a visa.

Glossary of Terms:

Biometric Passport - In addition to standard personal information such as name and date of birth, biometric passports contain a computer chip with the holder's measurable personal features such as fingerprints and an iris image scan as identification markers.

Machine Readable Passport - a passport with two lines of OCR-B machine-readable data. The photograph, the arrangement of data fields, and the size of the passport meet International Civil Aviation Organization standards.

US-VISIT Program - under this program, most foreign visitors traveling to the U.S. on a visa are required to have a digital photograph and their two index fingers scanned to verify their identity. Visas are required for students, business travelers, and most other visitors regardless of their country of residence.

Baltimore-Washington International Airport and selected Miami Seaport terminals are testing a departure confirmation program using automated kiosks. Travelers are required to confirm their departure from these ports by scanning their passport or visa and scanning both index fingers. Officials are evaluating the automated kiosks and considering alternatives for departure confirmation.