US, CARICOM establish regional biometric data-sharing partnership

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and the Caribbean Community’s (CARICOM) regional security agency, Implementation Agency for Crime and Security (IMPACS), signed an agreement to create the first multilateral biometric information sharing arrangement established by DHS, extending U.S. immigration vetting and border security checks across participating Caribbean countries.

The Biometrics Data Sharing Partnership Memorandum of Cooperation (BDSP) was signed July 10 at the Embassy of Saint Kitts and Nevis in Washington by DHS Under Secretary for Strategy, Policy and Plans Rob Law and IMPACS Executive Director Lt. Col. Michael Jones.

The agreement establishes a framework for automated queries and exchanges of biometric and other information to support the screening, vetting, and investigation of people considered possible national security, public safety, or immigration risks.

The exchanges are intended to help authorities identify potentially dangerous or fraudulently documented travelers before they reach the United States or another CARICOM country.

“This will strengthen cooperation between DHS and CARICOM IMPACS on border security and immigration vetting,” Law said, describing the memorandum as DHS’s first agreement to conduct biometric information sharing through a multilateral regional organization.

The arrangement is particularly directed at security concerns involving Eastern Caribbean citizenship-by-investment programs, which allow qualifying foreign applicants to obtain citizenship through government contributions or approved investments.

U.S. officials have warned that purchased citizenship can be used to conceal a person’s original identity, assets, or travel history and, in some cases, to evade visa or travel restrictions.

The State Department said the agreement would help close what it described as a significant gap in the Western Hemisphere’s security architecture by giving U.S. and Caribbean authorities more effective tools to screen citizenship applicants and international travelers.

Meanwhile, the Trump Gold Card is an immigration program created by executive order on September 19, 2025, that offers wealthy foreign nationals expedited consideration for lawful permanent residence after making a substantial financial gift to the U.S.

The program generally requires a $1 million contribution from an individual or $2 million from a company sponsoring an employee, in addition to processing fees and national security vetting. The administration directs agencies to consider Gold Card applicants under existing employment-based visa categories, particularly EB-1 and EB-2.

The central legal question is whether the executive branch can effectively create a new pay-for-residency pathway without Congress. The order attempts to operate within existing visa law rather than formally establishing a new visa category, but critics argue that large financial gifts do not necessarily satisfy the statutory qualifications for EB-1 or EB-2 visas.

Representatives of Antigua and Barbuda, Dominica, Grenada, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia and Saint Vincent, and the Grenadines attended the signing, along with officials from the Eastern Caribbean Central Bank, the White House Homeland Security Council, and the State Department.

CARICOM IMPACS already serves as the region’s central mechanism for coordinating criminal intelligence, passenger screening, and cross-border security.

Its structure includes the Regional Intelligence Fusion Centre in Trinidad and Tobago and the Joint Regional Communications Centre in Barbados, which supports regional processing of advance passenger information.

DHS said information obtained through the new partnership will strengthen vetting under existing U.S. law but will not alter current visa authorities or presidential powers to restrict entry under Section 212(f) of the Immigration and Nationality Act.

DHS and CARICOM IMPACS intend to make the arrangement operational before the end of 2026.

The announcements did not identify the biometric modalities to be exchanged, which U.S. databases will conduct the searches, how long information will be retained, or what procedures will exist for auditing searches, correcting inaccurate records, and challenging erroneous matches.

Article Topics

biometric data  |  biometrics  |  border security  |  Caribbean  |  cross-border data sharing  |  data sharing  |  DHS  |  identity intelligence  |  United States