FB pixel

UK updates penalties for breaking biometrics rules for digital visas

Alleged visa fraudsters nabbed in India
UK updates penalties for breaking biometrics rules for digital visas
 

Governments continue to pursue secure systems for biometric immigration control, but human opportunism remains a problem.

This week the UK published an update to its “code of practice about sanctions for non-compliance with the biometric registration regulations” attached to Biometric Immigration Documents (BIDs). The UK began rolling out BIDs in 2008, to replace potentially insecure immigration documents such as letters or ink stamps. Its 2007 Borders Act dictates that applicants for BIDs are required to provide biometric information such as a photograph of their face and fingerprints.

The code of practice, first published in 2015, addresses sanctions for those who fail to comply with the various maintenance requirements for BIDs, which now include updating a facial image every ten years (or every five, for youth under 16). The previous version did not stipulate how often images need to be updated, but rather required the document-holder to notify the government if the information became “false, misleading, or incomplete.” The change will help ensure the photos included in documents are not too old for accurate face biometrics matching.

Financial penalties and restrictions on movement include, in extreme cases of non-compliance, “the cancellation or variation by curtailment of a person’s existing leave to enter or remain in the UK.”

The updated version also introduces digital documents, such as e-visas, which the UK expect to fully transition to by the end of 2024.

VFS workers illegally file biometric data for visas

In a case of alleged extreme non-compliance with visa processes in India, a would-be trusted government partner is being accused of filing fraudulent Canadian visa applications using biometric information. The Economic Times of India reports that two employees of VFS Global allegedly produced false documents for 28 applicants and illegally registered their biometric information in Ahmedabad, in an attempt to subvert Canadian immigration protocol.

The perpetrators were captured on CCTV filing the biometrics in an otherwise empty VFS Ahmedabad office. They then forged appointment letters to send to Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC), which were flagged as suspicious by department officials.

For their trouble, reports the Times, the accused charged each applicant between 5,000 and 7,000 Indian rupees, or about US$60-85.

Related Posts

Article Topics

 |   |   |   |   |   |   | 

Latest Biometrics News

 

Biometric Update Podcast digs into deepfakes with Pindrop CEO

Deepfakes are one of the biggest issues of our age. But while video deepfakes get the most attention, audio deepfakes…

 

Know your geography for successful digital ID adoption: Trinsic

A big year for digital identity issuance, adoption and regulation has widened the opportunities for businesses around the world to…

 

UK’s digital ID trust problem now between business and government

It used to be that the UK public’s trust in the government was a barrier to the establishment of a…

 

Super-recognizers can’t help with deepfakes, but deepfakes can help with algorithms

Deepfake faces are beyond even the ability of super-recognizers to identify consistently, with some sobering implications, but also a few…

 

Age assurance regulations push sites to weigh risks and explore options for compliance

Online age assurance laws have taken effect in certain jurisdictions, prompting platforms to look carefully at what they’re liable for…

 

The future of DARPA’s quantum benchmarking initiative

DARPA started the Quantum Benchmarking Initiative (QBI) in July 2024 to expand hardware capabilities and accelerate research. In April 2025,…

Comments

Leave a Reply

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Market Analysis

Most Viewed This Week

Featured Company

Biometrics Insight, Opinion

Digital ID In-Depth

Biometrics White Papers

Biometrics Events