ICE expands field biometric identification with $25M iris recognition contract

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has issued a sole source award to Bi2 Technologies for iris biometric recognition technology intended to let ICE agents and 287(g) law enforcement partners rapidly identify people during field operations, according to a redacted justification for other than full and open competition.

The award is valued at $25.1 million and covers more than 1,500 mobile iris scanners, access to Bi2’s mobile offender recognition system, and access to a biometric information system used for offender identification.

The contract reflects ICE’s continued investment in field-based biometric identification tools that allow officers to verify identities outside traditional booking environments. By combining iris recognition with fingerprint and facial-image matching and access to centralized identity records, the system is designed to support real-time identification of individuals who may be using aliases or fraudulent identity documents.

ICE had announced its intention to award the contract earlier this month.

The justification says ICE needs the additional devices because it previously purchased Bi2 equipment and requires compatibility with systems already in use.

The document says no other vendor can meet the requirement because Bi2’s systems combine iris, fingerprint, and facial-image capture with real-time access to booking and criminal justice records.

ICE argues the technology supports border and interior enforcement operations by helping agents identify people who may be using false identities.

The agency also says the system gives 287(g) partners access to booking records and identity-validation information that may not appear in federal databases.

The award follows a September 2025 firm-fixed-price contract to Bi2 worth about $4.5 million for the same general capability. The latest award significantly expands that deployment, increasing the number of mobile biometric devices available to ICE and participating local law enforcement agencies.

Article Topics

BI2 Technologies  |  biometric identification  |  biometrics  |  ICE - U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement  |  iris biometrics  |  law enforcement  |  U.S. Government