When you travel internationally by air from many countries, there’s some sort of a departure check by immigration authorities, to be be able to track arrivals vs. departures. Historically, this isn’t really something that the United States has done, probably in part because our airports aren’t set up to easily facilitate that.
However, it appears that this is slowly starting to change, and could be rolled out on a more widespread basis soon, as reported by The New York Times, and flagged by View from the Wing.
In this post:
United States expands “biometric exit” for international travelers
The United States is increasingly rolling out a biometric exit program, which involves taking photos of passengers leaving the country, and then using facial recognition technology to ensure that travelers match their identification documents.
On the surface, this is something that has been allowed for some time, but it hasn’t been rolled out consistently. However, on September 15, 2025, the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs approved a proposed rule, clearing the way for the program to expand to all airports, seaports, and land crossings, across the country. While this program has been quietly growing for years, this approval formalized its expansion.
For air travelers, the way this works is that Customs and Border Protection officers are stationed at gates for departing international flights. In some situations, there will be cameras on a stick, that take the pictures of departing passengers. In other situations, the officers are positioned in jet bridges during boarding with their smartphones.
For foreign nationals, the photos can remain in a database for 75 years, while for US citizens, the photos are matched to passports and deleted within 12 hours. US citizens can opt out and request to be verified manually by showing their passport, and undergoing a visual face comparison. However, it seems this is being discouraged, with some travelers stating that officers told them they’d have to wait until everyone else boarded, in order to be able to do that.
Here’s the part that’s shocking, at least to me — today, 52% of departing air travelers are “biometrically confirmed,” and since June 2017, 810 million people have undergone this process, and 500,000 foreign nationals who have overstayed their visas have been confirmed using this process. I’m confused — does this really refer to international air travelers, or just biometric verification at TSA checkpoints?
Opponents of this concept point out that these photos could be used for more than just biometric exit, and that facial recognition is prone to false positives, particularly for people of color and women.
My take on expanding exit controls in the United States
Around the globe, departure control with immigration officials is a common practice, so it’s an area where the United States is definitely playing catch up.
As much as some people may have privacy concerns, the reality is that we have zero privacy when traveling by air as is, and I don’t see this as materially infringing on any rights to privacy. Our passport photos are already on file with the government, our IDs are scanned at security checkpoints, airlines use biometric boarding, there are cameras all over the terminal, etc. So while I don’t love the world of over-surveillance we live in, I think that’s just the reality of the times…
If anything, my concern is that this just seems like a really impractical, makeshift solution. The problem is that our airports in the United States aren’t set up with separate parts of the terminal for departing international travelers, so we can’t have some centralized departure check.
I don’t have a huge issue with these cameras at the gate, though at least in terms of optics, it seems kind of creepy and unprofessional for the process to be that immigration officers are taking pictures of passengers with smartphones.
I’m surprised to learn that over half of air travelers are already getting some sort of biometric exit verification, as I wouldn’t have expected that number to be so high.
Bottom line
The United States is expanding its biometric exit program, whereby outbound air travelers are having their biometric data scanned before departing on international flights. While this has already been in use for some time, it sounds like we can expect to see it expanded significantly in the near future.
So if you see immigration officers in the jet bridge taking pictures of passengers with their smartphones, now you know why.
What do you make of the US expanding biometric exit?
Seems reasonable. People with outstanding warrants should not be able to leave the USA. If they want to play fugitive and run across a border, whatever, but they shouldn't be able to fly/drive/train out with ease. As of now, when you get fingerprinted at jail, the feds get a report, so the infrastructure to communicate crime related data from countries to the feds likely supports this already.
Exit controls are only really scary in places...
Seems reasonable. People with outstanding warrants should not be able to leave the USA. If they want to play fugitive and run across a border, whatever, but they shouldn't be able to fly/drive/train out with ease. As of now, when you get fingerprinted at jail, the feds get a report, so the infrastructure to communicate crime related data from countries to the feds likely supports this already.
Exit controls are only really scary in places like India, which can and do use exit control as a way to prevent people not accused of crimes from leaving, like overstaying a visa. I've read before about how they'll prevent people from leaving, and force them into FRRO hell (read: bribery) to get an "exit visa", with a nice 10 year blacklisting on top.
At MCO and HNL, when boarding flights bound for Canada, AirCanada has been using biometrics gate on a mandatory basis for boarding, and my understanding is that these are used instead of having a CBP officer do the checks... I guess CBP could still run supplementary checks but since these gates have been live, have not seen CBP conducting extra checks.
The delusion on here is astounding. I strongly recommend doing some reading on existing behind-the-scenes exit controls - it's fascinating. The only change happening is that a confirmation of who the data says is departing matches with their biometrics (which the relevant alphabet soup agencies all already have if you have a US passport or have entered the country). I hate big government, but this is a non-issue unless you were planning to use someone...
The delusion on here is astounding. I strongly recommend doing some reading on existing behind-the-scenes exit controls - it's fascinating. The only change happening is that a confirmation of who the data says is departing matches with their biometrics (which the relevant alphabet soup agencies all already have if you have a US passport or have entered the country). I hate big government, but this is a non-issue unless you were planning to use someone else's demographics/passports and hope that you do not get caught.
There is already exit control, with arrivals and departures recorded for everyone. Then it's matched for compliance to flag visa overstays, for 100% of non-citizens. You can look up your US travel history here:
https://i94.cbp.dhs.gov/search/history-search
Wow, this is interesting. I'm getting a result that states "No Record Found For Traveler" even though I traveled internationally twice this year and multiple times over the past 4 years. Hm...
Makes me wonder how valid the results for foreigners is...
@Weekend Surfer Are you looking using a US passport perhaps? Those records are only for non-US citizens.
@weekendsurfer It's stated as being for international travelers visiting the United States
Exit check is longgggg overdue in US. It always surprised me that why wouldn’t US do what every other country in the world already does.
The privacy argument is a BS. In this day and age, there shouldn’t be any expectation of privacy in a public space. Governments already has every information possible on you, so this additional photo isn’t going to make a big difference.
The issue is this implementation. I am sure if...
Exit check is longgggg overdue in US. It always surprised me that why wouldn’t US do what every other country in the world already does.
The privacy argument is a BS. In this day and age, there shouldn’t be any expectation of privacy in a public space. Governments already has every information possible on you, so this additional photo isn’t going to make a big difference.
The issue is this implementation. I am sure if intelligent people were to put their heads together they’d come up with a better solution to ensure there’s 100% coverage for international exit. It’s a no brainer.
As an American citizen, I'm not keen on having a CPB officer hanging out by the jetway to sign off on my freedom to leave the country.
Next...
The "we already have no privacy" argument is how surveillance states are built - one step at a time.
The US has never systematically tracked citizens leaving the country. This isn't modernization, it's new. Foreign nationals' photos are kept for 75 years. That's not verification, that's permanent tracking infrastructure.
The visa overstay justification is weak - airlines already provide manifests and the government has entry records. You can match those without facial recognition.
The real...
The "we already have no privacy" argument is how surveillance states are built - one step at a time.
The US has never systematically tracked citizens leaving the country. This isn't modernization, it's new. Foreign nationals' photos are kept for 75 years. That's not verification, that's permanent tracking infrastructure.
The visa overstay justification is weak - airlines already provide manifests and the government has entry records. You can match those without facial recognition.
The real concern is mission creep. Every "limited purpose" surveillance tool expands - PATRIOT Act, Stingrays, you name it. And the opt-out isn't real if CBP makes you board last.
Facial recognition has documented accuracy problems for people of color and women. When it's wrong at borders, there are real consequences.
We don't have to accept this just because we've already lost ground. Each expansion deserves pushback, not a shrug.
Good. Too many overstayers are coming and going as they please. The biggest group is refugees going on many month vacations to the home that isn’t safe enough for them. Europe has huge issues with this problem.
Did you smoke some drugs before writing this comment? It's all invented and nonesense. First of all "overstayers" are not coming and going as they please. And Europe doesn't have "huge issues" with them. All right-wing snowflake paranoia. You just seem to have problems with foreigners.
As Ben points out, we have no privacy. Your face is scanned, captured or video'd dozens of times every day. So lean in.
GE has become awesome. Scan your face and go. Through in seconds. Lean in and get security up to that speed.
The US has had exit controls for non-citizens for many decades. They used to be done on a piece of paper - people were given one on entry and had to give it back on exit. This persisted until only about 10 years ago, long after it entered the category of quaint. It was expensive to administer, open to fraud and, of course, people would lose the piece of paper.
It's perfectly reasonable for a...
The US has had exit controls for non-citizens for many decades. They used to be done on a piece of paper - people were given one on entry and had to give it back on exit. This persisted until only about 10 years ago, long after it entered the category of quaint. It was expensive to administer, open to fraud and, of course, people would lose the piece of paper.
It's perfectly reasonable for a country to record exit activity. First off, it is a good way of finding out who has overstayed their welcome. Secondly, states can collect the information to determine residency, so what's different from the federal government.
Was this really “secretly?” I don’t trust the administration with my dogs’ poop bag, but as I understand this it’s tied to a series of post-9/11 security enhancements. Since a number of airlines have already been doing this at select airports it seems like a non-issue to me.
Presumably countries use exit customs to catch people overstaying a visa which could make them inadmissible for future entry. Airports in the US have never been set up for exit customs and today would not have the room for such. So now the technology can replace actual facilities. I get the privacy concerns. I certainly have little faith in the US bureaucracy.
I agree with the thrust of this comment but it's important to use clear terminology when it comes to this sort of thing. Exit customs aren't the same as passport control on departure.
Why do we need exit controls at all? Exit controls at places like CDG and even MUC can add so much time to your travel day, waiting in queues.
I don't understand the benefit of them? Once you leave, you become another country's problem.
I think this is a positive development because it should eventually lead to the realisation that everyone is better off with segregated international departures areas which also allow for connecting via the USA without the need to enter the country.
Who claimed this non-sense "facial recognition is prone to false positives, particularly for people of color and women"?
The same people who believe that every black person and every woman who has ever been hired was unqualified for the position but met a DEI quota.
Women and/or people of color have alleged that facial recognition software is racist/misogynist due to the erroneous assumption it was coded by white incel chuds.
In reality, it was coded by Indians and it's just incompetence the algo can't tell the difference between one or another
What’s secret about this? The government has been public about what the program is all about, and it is authorized and directed by statute. You can debate the efficacy of the system or whether it should exist, but it’s neither unique to the US nor secret.
While you are absolutely correct, "secret" gives the headline a sexy flair and something for the whack-jobs to get heated about.
"Opponents of this concept point out that these photos could be used for more than just biometric exit, and that facial recognition is prone to false positives, particularly for people of color and women."
Please explain.
The issue is why now? What determines an agent to let you leave? The airlines are giving CBP the data so knowing who is on has never been an issue. It’s just a different way to do exit controls. But having barriers preventing the exit gives power away from the citizens. If it hasnt been needed in 20 years why now?
You must have missed the part of ensuring the actual person matches the travel documents and ticket. Sure the airlines have provided the government data. But, what if the person traveling is not the person "in the data?" Separately, the government has the right to screen for wanted persons (or those on bail) who are attempting to flee the country. You have an inaccurate understanding of an individual's "power" and rights.
@Lee is right. I suspect CBP has decided that it if they want high-quality scrutiny of biometrics, to better track who has left the country, they have to do it themselves. Can't rely on the Delta check-in agent to carefully examine the photo. (chose Delta purely at random, honest)
I am not surprised at the number of matched travelers. For US citizens and permanent residents (green card holders), CBP already has a photo of the traveler on file, as they are pulling it from the respective passports and/or PR card. This is the same technology that is enabling PreCheck Touchless lanes.
For non-US citizen travelers, a picture is taken by CBP during entry processing, which is cross-referenced to the passport presented.
The only...
I am not surprised at the number of matched travelers. For US citizens and permanent residents (green card holders), CBP already has a photo of the traveler on file, as they are pulling it from the respective passports and/or PR card. This is the same technology that is enabling PreCheck Touchless lanes.
For non-US citizen travelers, a picture is taken by CBP during entry processing, which is cross-referenced to the passport presented.
The only folks where matching may not be possible are 1) If they had dramatic weight loss or plastic surgery; or 2) more often, their long hair is covering their ears.
@ptahcha in your first paragraph you omitted NEXUS and Global Entry Trusted Travelers, which are handled similarly, for the same reason (photo on file). Your second implies that all non-US citizens are inspected by CBP personnel upon entry, but many exceptions exist: Green Card holders with Global Entry, Canadian citizens with NEXUS/Global Entry and others with NEXUS/Global Entry. Of course I'm not rebutting your main point, with which I agree. In fact, the whole point...
@ptahcha in your first paragraph you omitted NEXUS and Global Entry Trusted Travelers, which are handled similarly, for the same reason (photo on file). Your second implies that all non-US citizens are inspected by CBP personnel upon entry, but many exceptions exist: Green Card holders with Global Entry, Canadian citizens with NEXUS/Global Entry and others with NEXUS/Global Entry. Of course I'm not rebutting your main point, with which I agree. In fact, the whole point of Trusted Traveller programs is to perform this matching without labour. And the programs sell well.
If a person is in public, the Plain Sight Doctrine applies and the person has no reasonable expectation of privacy. Separately, there is a reasonable basis for such a practice: flight security.
Ah, the great catch-all excuse when there is no good justification for an action: security.
Do the gates that have biometric boarding (where you just present your face in front of the camera to be allowed to board) also count towards the exit checkpoint data?
This is what I thought they were using for departure control, at least it’s the impression I got reading the VFTW article.
I’m sure it is which would explain the 50% datapoint - these gates are everywhere nowadays I can’t remember the last time I boarded a US departing international flight and needed my passport out
Yes. CBP is the source of the photo data.