With back-to-back regulations for aliens, the Trump administration is leaving no stone unturned to clog loopholes in the US immigration system. After introducing a hefty Visa Integrity fee and intensifying the CBP inspection of non-US citizens at entry airports, the US government is up with new entry-exit rules for all visa holders and Green Cardholders. The new US entry-exit rules make photo and biometric data mandatory for all non-US citizens.
What is the new US entry and exit rule?
Published in the Federal Register on 27 October 2025, the new US entry-exit system requires CBP officers to take photos and collect biometric details of all foreigners for mandatory facial recognition at all airports, seaports, and land crossings. The data to be collected upon arrival in the US will be matched against the data to be collected during departure. Any discrepancies in the biometric data comparison may get an immigrant or non-immigrant detained or deported. It may render them inadmissible to USA in the worst scenario.
New US entry-exit rule exemptions
The Department of Homeland Security clearly states that the new biometric entry-exit system does not exempt even children under 14 and the elderly over 79 from photograph capture. Precisely, the regulation will be enforced on all non-US citizens, regardless of age, language, and nationality. Since it won’t apply to US nationals and citizens, the US-born children of aliens are likely to be exempted.
Are Green Cardholders exempt to the new US border rule?
Green Cardholders are not exempt to the mandatory biometric entry-exit system at any US ports of entry, as they are only lawful permanent residents, not US citizens. Their US-born kids may be among potential exemptions.
What is new about the US border rules for aliens this time?
The new rule is a mandatory, integrated version of biometric data collection which has been limited to some groups of aliens (foreign nationals) on their entry to USA all these years. The new US border regulation that requires all visa holders and Green Cardholders to be photographed during entry and exit is a calculated move to check visa overstays, stop travel document fraud, mitigate national security risks, identify illegal non-immigrants, and trace individuals disobeying immigration laws.
Is the new US entry-exit system similar to India’s e-Arrival Card?
Not at all! Unlike the photo-based US entry and exit system, India’s digital e-arrival card does not require foreign citizens to upload any documents online. Effective 1 October 2025, the e-arrival card to India aims to ensure faster immigration clearance and quick exit or transfer to the connecting domestic flight.
