U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) has announced the implementation of Simplified Arrival at Miami International Airport (MIA) and George Bush Intercontinental Airport.
Simplified Arrival is an enhanced international arrival process that uses facial biometrics to automate the manual document checks that are already required for admission into the United States. This process provides travelers with a touchless process that further secures and streamlines international arrivals while fulfilling a longstanding congressional mandate to biometrically record the entry and exit of non-U.S. citizens.
Simplified Arrival only uses the biometric facial comparison process at a time and place where travelers are already required by law to verify their identity by presenting a travel document. When travelers arrive at Simplified Arrival airports on an international flight, they will pause for a photo at the primary inspection point. CBP’s biometric facial comparison process will compare the new photo of the traveler to a small gallery of high-quality images that the traveler has already provided to the government, such as passport and visa photos. In addition, foreign travelers who have traveled to the U.S. previously will no longer need to provide fingerprints as their identity will be confirmed through the touchless facial comparison process.
“We are extremely proud to now be able to provide the convenience of Simplified Arrival to all of our international passengers,” said Lester Sola, MIA Director and CEO. “Since it was first deployed in our Concourse E facility in 2018, the expedited, touchless process has been screening as many as 10 passengers per minute. Now, clearing Customs for passengers throughout MIA is as easy as the click of a camera.”
“Simplified Arrival allows international travelers to experience a more touchless, seamless and intuitive process when arriving here,” said CBP Director of Houston Field Operations (operators of George Bush Intercontinental Airport) Jud Murdock. “This modern process reduces the direct contact between our officers and the traveling public during primary inspection.”
Simplified Arrival pairs one of the industry’s highest ranked facial comparison algorithms (as assessed by the National Institute of Standards and Technology) with trained CBP officers who are skilled at verifying the authenticity of travel documents. If a traveler cannot be matched to a photo on record using the Simplified Arrival process, the traveler will proceed through the traditional inspection process consistent with existing requirements for entry into the United States.
Travelers who wish to opt out of the new biometric process may notify a CBP officer as they approach the primary inspection point. These travelers will be required to present a valid travel document for inspection by a CBP officer and they will be processed consistent with existing requirements for admission into the United States.
