U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) has introduced Simplified Arrival at the pedestrian border crossings at the Ports of Lukeville and Sasabe in Arizona.
Simplified Arrival is an enhanced international arrival process that uses biometric facial comparison technology to automate the manual document checks that are already required for admission into the United States. This process provides travelers with a secure, touchless travel experience while fulfilling a longstanding Congressional mandate to biometrically record the entry and exit of non-U.S. citizens.
Located in Pima County, Lukeville and Sasabe are two of the smaller of the six ports of entry in the state of Arizona, crossing between Sonora, Mexico and the United States. CBP Officers at the Port of Lukeville processed more than 280,000 privately owned vehicles and more than 632,000 pedestrians in Fiscal Year 2020, while Sasabe officers processed just more than 23,000 vehicles and 43,000 pedestrians. Comparatively, officers at the much larger Port of Nogales, divided into DeConcini, Morley, and Mariposa gates crossing into Sonora and Mariposa, Mexico, processed more than 2.4 million vehicles and nearly 6.7 million pedestrians.
“CBP is employing facial biometrics to build a best-in-class travel system that facilitates lawful travel while maintaining the highest security and privacy standards,” said Guadalupe H. Ramirez, CBP Director of Field Operations for the Tucson Field Office. “The touchless identity verification process will enhance the travel experience for the nearly 700,000 passengers and pedestrians who enter the United States through Lukeville and Sasabe every year.”
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 a traveler arrives at the pedestrian lanes at Lukeville or Sasabe, he or she will pause for a photo at the primary inspection point. A CBP officer will review and query the travel document, which will retrieve the traveler’s passport or visa photo from government holdings. The new photo of the traveler will be compared to the photo previously collected.
The biometric facial comparison process only takes a few seconds and is more than 98 percent accurate. In addition, foreign travelers who have traveled to the United States previously will no longer need to provide fingerprints, as their identity will be confirmed through the touchless facial biometric process.
Earlier this month, CBP announced it had introduced Simplified Arrival at Douglas and Naco border crossings in Arizona.
