DOS Instructs on Machine Readable and Biometric Requirements
FM SECSTATE WASHDC
TO ALL DIPLOMATIC AND CONSULAR POSTS
SPECIAL EMBASSY PROGRAM
AMEMBASSY DUSHANBE
AMEMBASSY KABUL
AMEMBASSY KHARTOUM
AMEMBASSY BUJUMBURA
AMEMBASSY PORT AU PRINCE
UNCLAS STATE 058050
FOR CONSULAR SECTION CHIEFS AND NIV CHIEFS
E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: CVIS, CMGT
SUBJECT: BIOMETRIC AND MACHINE-READABLE PASSPORT
REQUIREMENTS FOR VWP TRAVELERS BEGINNING OCTOBER 26, 2004
REF: A) STATE 16751 B) 03 STATE 345354
SUMMARY
-------
1. In response to queries from several sources, this cable summarizes and reiterates previous guidance on passport requirements for Visa Waiver Program (VWP) travelers. Ref A clarified that none of these requirements apply to NIV applicants, but only to VWP travelers applying for visa- free entry at a US POE. This cable discusses the October 26, 2004 deadline, by which time VWP travelers will be required to present machine-readable passports (MRPs). That date also marks the deadline by which VWP countries will be required to have a biometric passport program, and VWP travelers will be required to present passports incorporating biometric identifiers, if their passports were issued on or after October 26, 2004. This cable is not new guidance, but is meant only as clarification. End summary.
TWO REQUIREMENTS WITH A COMMON DEADLINE
---------------------------------------
2. Machine-readability and biometrics are not the same thing. A machine-readable passport is one that can be "read" mechanically when swiped through a passport reader. It contains two lines of text on the bottom of the data page which, when read, populate the bio-data fields for the data entry clerk in the Consular Section or the Immigration Inspector at the port of entry (POE).
3. The Visa Waiver Permanent Program Act of October 30, 2000 established a deadline of October 1, 2007 when VWP travelers would be required to present an MRP for visa-free entry. The USA PATRIOT Act advanced that date to October 1, 2003, but provided waiver authority for the Department of State. In September 2003, the Secretary exercised that authority and waived the MRP requirement for most VWP travelers until October 26, 2004. (For nationals of Andorra, Belgium, Brunei, Liechtenstein and Slovenia, the requirement is already in force). Beginning October 26, 2004, all VWP travelers must present an MRP for visa-free entry.
4. The October 26, 2004 date of the MRP waiver was chosen to coincide with a second VWP requirement, that of a biometric passport. A "biometric" or a "biometric identifier" is an objective measurement of a physical characteristic of an individual which, when captured in a database, can be used to verify identity or check against other entries in the database. The best known biometric is the fingerprint, but others include facial recognition and iris scans. A biometric passport will take a biometric (in the case of VWP, the standard determined by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), is facial recognition technology) and store it on a contactless chip embedded in the passport. The POE inspector can scan the passport to obtain the passenger's biodata. The passport can thus be read in three ways: with the MRP reader, with the biometric scanner, and the old fashioned way with human eyes.
BIOMETRIC PASSPORTS -- MORE THAN JUST HAVING A PROGRAM
------------------------------------------------------
5. Unlike the MRP requirement, which applies to all VWP arrivals beginning on October 26, 2004, the biometric requirement applies only to VWP travelers whose passports were issued that day or later. A passport issued on or before October 25, 2004 will be valid for VWP entry to the U.S. after October 26 as long as it is machine-readable. If it is not machine-readable, the VWP national must obtain a visa. A passport issued on or after October 26, 2004 must not only be machine-readable but also contain a biometric; otherwise, the traveler is not eligible to use VWP and must obtain a visa.
6. Some confusion may exist over the biometric requirement because it is implemented in two separate steps. First, the VWP country must certify that it has a biometric program in order to continue its participation in VWP after October 26, 2004. Second, individual travelers must present an MRP with biometrics, if the passport was issued on or after October 26, 2004. The fact that the country has a biometric passport program does not guarantee VWP entry after October 26, even if the individual's passport is machine-readable. If issued on or after October 26, 2004, the individual's passport must be both machine- readable and contain a biometric identifier.
WHICH VWP COUNTRIES WILL MEET THE BIOMETRIC DEADLINE?
-------------------------------------------------
7. Almost none. Australia and New Zealand may make the deadline. Some countries have indicated that implementing a biometrics program might have been possible by October 26, but they are putting on the brakes because of questions of interoperability (can a U.S. POE scanner read a Danish biometric chip?) that remain unresolved. Most, including the major VWP countries in terms of travel such as Japan and the UK, simply cannot overcome the hard-technology hurdles of designing, testing, and rolling out biometric passports on a large scale until late 2005, possibly later. Although some countries will not be issuing biometric passports by October, they will be certified as having a program if they meet certain requirements and can demonstrate that they are actively pursuing development of biometric passports. VWP countries were asked to so certify in reftel B.
8. Unlike with the MRP requirement, there is no legal provision for waiver of the biometric passport requirement. CA is aware of the difficulties this requirement will cause overseas, and is working to address the issue. We will keep posts advised.