U.S. Customs and Border Protection at the Massena Port of Entry recently implemented a pilot program providing giving officers the ability to scan the two-dimensional bar code from a non-enhanced U.S. state/Canadian provincial driver’s license. Under current requirements, the Akwesasne community in northern New York also presents tribal identification cards, which are non-machine readable, at the border that are non-machine readable.
Until this pilot program, CBP lacked the ability had no ability in the vehicle primary area to automatically quickly scan driver’s license documents that are not radio-frequency identification-enabled, or lack a machine readable zone.
“Presenting a state or provincial driver’s license with a tribal identification card will increase security at the border and allow officer’s to more efficiently and expeditiously process Native Americans,” said Port Director Robert Dwyer. “This is a win-win for the community of Akwesasne and U.S. Customs and Border Protection. Travelers experience a faster inspection, and CBP has the ability to scan the information for increased accuracy.”
