The United States Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has announced new border regulations that will require all non-US citizens, including Green Card holders, to be photographed when entering and leaving the country. The rule, set to take effect on December 26, 2025, is part of the Trump administration’s continued efforts to tighten immigration controls and strengthen national security.
According to a report by India Today, the DHS said that all immigrants and non-citizens will now be photographed upon both entry and exit, expanding existing data collection practices that have been in place since 2004. Previously, only certain categories of travellers were required to provide biometric data such as fingerprints and photographs.
The US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) will now broaden its biometric collection to include land, sea, and air ports of entry. As per the Hindustan Times, CBP officers will collect photographs and other biometric details from nearly all non-citizens, removing earlier exemptions for travellers below 14 and above 79 years of age. This means every foreign national, including long-term residents and Green Card holders, will now be subject to biometric capture when entering or leaving the US.
Citing Bloomberg, India Today reported that CBP will use data from passports, visa applications, and photographs captured by border officers, integrating them with facial comparison technology to confirm travellers’ identities. DHS said this system will help combat identity fraud, prevent the use of fake travel documents, and track individuals who overstay their visas.
Officials also pointed to national security benefits, explaining that the enhanced entry-exit system would help detect cases of terrorism, fraudulent documentation, and incomplete biographic data. The Federal Register filing by CBP stated that implementing a unified biometric verification system would close long-standing gaps in border monitoring.
A 2023 Congressional Research Service report, cited by Reuters, estimated that visa overstays accounted for nearly 42% of the approximately 11 million undocumented immigrants in the United States. The DHS believes this expansion will help address that issue more effectively.
Since assuming office in January 2025, President Donald Trump has introduced a series of stringent immigration measures, including ending birthright citizenship and expanding ICE raids to deport individuals labelled as “illegal criminal aliens.” The Hindustan Times reported that his administration has also implemented stricter screening for visa applicants and Green Card holders, including social media vetting, which has already led to detentions and visa cancellations.
However, the new biometric rule has drawn criticism from civil rights groups and privacy advocates. A 2024 report by the US Commission on Civil Rights warned that facial recognition technology tends to misidentify Black individuals and other minorities more frequently. Bloomberg quoted Cody Venzke, senior policy counsel at the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), saying that the technology “is unreliable, disproportionately harms people of colour, and serves as the foundation for a perpetual surveillance state.”
Despite privacy concerns, CBP officials maintain that the biometric entry-exit system will significantly enhance border security. According to Hindustan Times, the agency expects full implementation of the system across all commercial airports and seaports within the next three to five years.
