McCarran International Airport installs SITA’s automated passport control kiosks

McCarran International Airport in Las Vegas recently installed SITA’s automated passport control (APC) kiosks to increase efficiency and streamline the customs and immigration process for all international passengers.

The APC self-service kiosks, which went live in mid-February, use a biometric and biographic data capture process that allows passengers to provide their travel document, biometric data and customs declaration before speaking to a U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officer.

The kiosks increase efficiency and streamlines processes at the ports of entry by eliminating the need for a CBP officer to scan each traveler’s documents.

“The APC kiosks that we have supplied to McCarran International Airport in Las Vegas are just the first step in a journey to use innovative technology to improve the passenger experience at customs and border control,” said Paul Houghton, SITA president of Americas. “Looking ahead we are investigating how mobile applications could be used for passport control and other border checks, with the aim of improving the passenger facilitation while ensuring security levels are maintained.“

Approved by U.S. Customs and Border Protection for accurate data collection and verification of passenger facial and fingerprint biometrics against passengers’ passports, the APC kiosks are authorized to process all travelers from the United States, Canada or any of the 38 visa waiver countries without having to pre-enrollment.

The kiosk features a touch screen for passengers to complete their customs declaration form. Throughout the process, the system automatically verifies and validates their travel documents, checks flight information, captures an ICAO-compliant face image, and scans up to 10 fingerprints for foreign nationals.

The entire self-service process can be done in 90 seconds or less, and at the end, travelers receive a receipt which they can submit to the CBP officer for the final clearance at a fast-track dedicated lane.

SITA’s APC kiosks can be found at airports across the country, including Boston, JFK New York, Los Angeles, Orlando, Philadelphia, San Diego, Tampa, and Miami, which recently ordered 44 additional kiosks.

Article Topics

airports  |  biometrics  |  ePassports  |  kiosk  |  SITA