MIA Is Latest U.S. Gateway Airport to Fully Deploy Simplified Arrival for All International Passengers
Just in time before the holiday travel season, Miami International Airport and U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) announced the airport-wide expansion of Simplified Arrival – CBP’s enhanced international arrival process that uses facial biometrics to automate the manual document checks already required for admission into the U.S. Among the leading U.S. airports for international passengers, MIA is the latest to fully deploy Simplified Arrival.
After travelers arrive at MIA from 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 images 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.
MIA Director and CEO, Lester Sola, said:We are extremely proud to now be able to provide the convenience of Simplified Arrival to all of our international passengers.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 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 at MIA 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.
Deputy Assistant Commissioner for Field Operations, U.S. Customs and Border Protection, Diane J. Sabatino, said:CBP is excited to partner with Miami-Dade Aviation Department (MDAD) to expand the use of facial biometrics at MIA and advance the future of secure, touchless travel.CBP combines the top performing NEC-3 algorithm with highly trained CBP officers who are skilled at verifying the authenticity of travel documents to ensure the highest possible accuracy as part of this innovative and streamlined arrivals process.
CBP is committed to its privacy obligations and has taken steps to safeguard the privacy of all travelers. CBP has employed strong technical security safeguards and has limited the amount of personally identifiable information used in the facial biometric process. New photos of U.S. citizens will be deleted within 12 hours. Photos of most foreign nationals will be stored in a secure Department of Homeland Security system.
This article was originally published by Miami International Airport.
