At U.S. international airports, INS inspectors have, on average, less than one minute to decide whether to admit applicants for admission to the United States. During this brief encounter, inspectors must observe the applicants, ask questions, examine all travel documents, and run identification checks against computerized databases.
Airlines can also play a vital role in ensuring that individuals have complete and proper documents.
Airline industry personnel screen passengers and their documents at foreign airports prior to passengers boarding an aircraft bound for the United States. Those passengers that present blatantly fraudulent documents or do not possess complete and proper documents should not be allowed to board the aircraft. When the airlines fail to screen such passengers, the airlines are subject to fines and the cost of transporting the passengers back to their originating ports. The burden on INS to identify and deny entry to individuals attempting to enter the United States illegally is greatly reduced if airlines are properly trained and have sufficient information from INS to prevent such individuals from boarding the aircraft at foreign points of embarkation. Our report identifies needed improvements in the areas of airline training, information sharing, and general communication.