Say cheese? Why you’ll soon have to take photos when entering, exiting U.S.

Travellers will soon be required to have their photograph taken when entering or leaving the U.S. by air, sea or land — including Canadians and even American citizens.

Travellers will soon be required to have their photograph taken when entering or leaving the U.S. by air, sea or land — including Canadians and even American citizens.

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) said Monday the expansion of facial recognition and comparison capabilities at all ports of entry and all travellers, regardless of age, is necessary for national security, as well as to crack down on fraudulent documents and visa overstays.

It said the amended security policy will go into effect Dec. 26, but noted it could take years before a “comprehensive” biometric data collection system is in place.

“CBP (U.S. Customs and Border Protection) estimates that a biometric entry-exit system can be fully implemented at all commercial airports and sea ports for both entry and exit within the next three to five years,” the notice posted to the federal register says.

It adds additional pilot programs may be required to test photographing travellers entering and exiting by vehicle or on foot at land border crossings, as well as on private aircraft.

While the U.S. has been collecting biometric data from travellers upon entry for several years, the department and experts on both sides of the border say expanding it to those leaving is long overdue.

“There’s a lot of countries that do this, and we should be doing this too (in Canada),” said Kelly Sundberg, a criminology professor at Mount Royal University who studies border security.

The policy would require anyone entering or leaving the U.S. to have their photograph taken during the check-in process at airports, as well as when crossing the border on land and when docking or disembarking at a sea port.