In 1996, federal law required the development of an automated entry and exit control system to match arrival and departure records for foreign nationals entering and leaving the United States, and to enable identification of overstays. Subsequently, the Immigration and Naturalization Service Data Management Improvement Act of 2000 required implementation of an integrated entry and exit data system for foreign nationals. The system was to provide access to and integrate arrival and departure data that are authorized or required to be created or collected under law and are in an electronic format in certain databases, such as those used at POEs and U.S. consulates abroad, and assist in identifying nonimmigrant visa overstays. In 2003, DHS initiated the US- VISIT program to develop a comprehensive entry and exit system to collect biometric data from foreign nationals entering or exiting the country through POEs. In 2004, US-VISIT initiated the first step of this program by collecting biometric data on foreign nationals entering the United States at 115 airports and 14 seaports. The Intelligence Reform and Terrorism Prevention Act of 2004 required the Secretary of Homeland Security to develop a plan to accelerate full implementation of an automated biometric entry and exit data system that matches available information provided by foreign nationals upon their arrival in and departure from the United States. In fiscal year 2016, Congress reiterated its requirement for DHS to submit a plan to implement a biometric entry and exit capability and established a funding mechanism available to the Secretary of Homeland Security beginning in fiscal year 2017 to develop and implement a biometric entry and exit system. Specifically, fifty percent of amounts collected pursuant to temporary fee increases for L-1 and H-1B visas, which began in fiscal year 2016 and will expire at the end of fiscal year 2025, up to a total of $1 billion, shall be deposited into the 9-11 Response and Biometric Exit Account for DHS to implement the biometric entry and exit data system. Since 2009, DHS has been exploring various biometric exit capabilities through laboratory and field testing. For instance, in 2009, the legacy US- VISIT program, in partnership with CBP and the Transportation Security Administration (TSA), deployed two biometric exit pilot programs in U.S. airports. In 2014, CBP also collaborated with the DHS Science and Technology Directorate to test possible biometric solutions in simulated operational conditions, using the results to inform subsequent CBP biometric efforts. Although this effort informed later biometric exit pilot programs, it did not test potential biometric capabilities in a real-world setting. Figure 1 demonstrates key actions taken by Congress and DHS to pursue biometric entry and exit capabilities from 1996 through 2016. Federal law also requires that DHS implement a program to collect data, for each fiscal year, regarding the total number of foreign visitors who overstayed their lawful admission period in the United States; and submit an annual report to Congress providing numerical estimates of the number of foreign nationals from each country in each nonimmigrant classification who remained in the country beyond their authorized period of stay. Two DHS components—CBP and ICE—are primarily responsible for collecting and maintaining overstay data, issuing reports on overstays, and addressing potential overstays, as shown in table 1. Further, the Office of Biometric Identity Management, which was created in March 2013 and replaced US-VISIT, is responsible for storing biometric data for the department. In addition, the State Department is responsible for ensuring that individuals who have previously overstayed and are ineligible for a visa do not receive one when applying for a visa to the United States at consular offices overseas. Since our 2013 report on DHS’s efforts to develop a biometric exit capability, CBP has conducted four biometric pilot programs intended to inform the acquisition of a biometric exit system: (1) Biometric Exit Mobile Air Test (BE-Mobile) (mobile fingerprint reader); (2) 1 to 1 Facial Comparison Project (facial recognition upon entry); (3) Departure Information Systems Test (matching on-site facial scan to a gallery of photographs); and (4) the Southwest Border Pedestrian Exit Field Test (face and iris scanning at pedestrian exit from the United States). As of September 2016, CBP reported that it had obligated nearly $13 million developing, implementing, and evaluating these four pilot programs, as illustrated in table 2. This amount includes over $3.5 million to install secure Wi-Fi systems for supporting the BE-Mobile pilots in three of the test airports. BE-Mobile. In summer of 2015, CBP began deploying the BE-Mobile pilot at the 10 highest international passenger volume airports in the United States. Under this pilot, CBP officers stationed at the passenger loading bridges of selected flights used a handheld mobile device to scan fingerprints and passports for certain foreign nationals at the time of departure from the United States at identified airports. The biometric and biographic data collected by the BE-Mobile device was matched against data such as departures and arrivals in the United States, criminal histories, and visa status. The goal of the BE-Mobile pilot was to evaluate the viability of using the technology to collect biometric exit data from a sample population on randomly selected flights, as well as to evaluate the viability of implementing biometric exit in conjunction with CBP’s outbound enforcement operations. See figure 2 for a representation of the BE-Mobile device. During our observations, CBP officials noted that the BE-Mobile pilot demonstrated that while the technology can effectively capture biometric data and match that data against DHS databases, it requires too much time and manpower to be a solution for biometric exit capabilities on all flights departing the United States—a statement consistent with our own observations of BE-Mobile at two airports. According to CBP officials, the pilot program established that the manifest data provided by the carriers in the Advance Passenger Information System (APIS) are accurate and reliable. However, using BE-Mobile to screen outgoing passengers is time consuming. For example, in May 2016, we observed CBP’s use of BE- Mobile at Los Angeles International Airport to capture biometric information on categories of passengers included in the pilot (approximately 75 individuals) on one flight departing for Mexico. We observed that the outbound process using BE-Mobile took six CBP officers—who constitute a CBP tactical operations team—approximately 45 minutes to complete. CBP officials noted that when those six officers are conducting outbound enforcement operations using BE-Mobile, they are not conducting inspections or operations on inbound cargo and passengers. CBP officials also noted that the BE-Mobile system provided some benefits to the officers checking foreign nationals leaving the country. For instance, BE-Mobile allows officers to identify travelers who have suspicious travel histories or other derogatory information for further investigation by searching databases that detail individuals’ travel patterns, visa status, and criminal records. For instance, during our observation of the program at Los Angeles International Airport, one officer used BE-Mobile to identify an individual whose travel pattern may have indicated drug trafficking, so the individual was examined more closely before being allowed to board a plane to Mexico. Similarly, BE- Mobile can identify travelers exiting the country who do not have corresponding entry information, indicating that they potentially entered the country without inspection. Finally, BE-Mobile may identify individuals who have overstayed their period of admission, allowing CBP to collect more accurate overstay information. During our observation of BE-Mobile at John F. Kennedy International Airport, an officer identified one traveler as having overstayed a student visa, and noted the violation in the traveler’s Student and Exchange Visitor Information System record. According to CBP officials, CBP is currently maintaining the BE-Mobile program at the original 10 airports as an enforcement tool for use by CBP officers. These officials also said BE-Mobile may be a viable solution for smaller airports with relatively few outbound international flights at which officers could utilize BE-Mobile to obtain biometric information from exiting passengers at times when no international travelers are arriving. 1 to 1 Facial Comparison. Between March and May 2015, CBP tested the 1 to 1 Facial Comparison Project at Dulles International Airport. This pilot was intended to assist CBP officers in confirming the identity of U.S. citizens entering the United States against the travel document being presented. After the conclusion of the pilot program, the technology was deployed for use at both Dulles International Airport and John F. Kennedy International Airport. The technology compares a photograph taken of the U.S. citizen by a CBP officer to the photograph stored on the traveler’s passport chip to assess whether the individual applying for entry into the United States was the same person to whom the U.S. passport was legally issued. Although the capability was tested at entries to the United States, the information gathered through the pilot is intended to also inform the acquisition of a biometric exit capability, according to CBP officials. According to an evaluation conducted by CBP, the results of the pilot showed that biometric facial matching can increase the confidence with which CBP officers verify individuals’ identities without a negative impact to port of entry operations and traveler wait times. When we observed CBP officers at John F. Kennedy International Airport processing passengers using this technology in July 2016, they said that the facial recognition process added approximately 20 to 30 seconds to the processing time for each passenger. However, agency officials stated that the technology is not yet integrated with CBP systems, and will not impact wait times once it is fully integrated. See figure 3 for a representation of the 1 to 1 Facial Recognition use and equipment. Departure Information Systems Test. From June to September 2016, CBP deployed the Departure Information Systems Test pilot at Atlanta’s Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport. The goal of the pilot was to evaluate the effectiveness of biometric facial recognition matching of a real-time photograph of an individual to a gallery of facial images stored in a database.