Carnival Cruise Line has expanded their use of facial recognition on debarkation day to help eliminate lines when going through customs after closed looped cruises.
Carnival Cruise Line has rolled out the use of facial biometric technology at the following nine homeports in the U.S.: Miami, Port Canaveral, Tampa, Jacksonville, New York, Baltimore, Mobile, Galveston and Long Beach.
Guests debarking Carnival cruise ships at these ports at the end of a closed loop cruise pause at a kiosk with a camera and take a photo. Within seconds, the image is biometrically compared to their passport or visa photo to verify the guest’s identity with over 98 percent accuracy. Guests can then walk out of the cruise terminal with little to no wait.
“Expanding this technology at our U.S. homeports ensures we’re doing everything we can to make the debarkation process as simple as possible for our guests,” said Christine Duffy, president of Carnival Cruise Line. “Thanks to our partnership with CBP, these technology solutions make the process more efficient, while giving guests a sense of safety and security, knowing their information is protected.”
“CBP is excited to expand the use of facial biometrics in the debarkation process to further secure and streamline the passenger experience through public/private partnerships with the cruise industry,” said Diane J. Sabatino, Deputy Executive Assistant Commissioner, Office of Field Operations, U.S. Customs and Border Protection. “Through our partnership with Carnival Cruise Line, we will continue to transform cruise operations by leveraging technology and enhanced processes while also strengthening our data sharing agreement to further secure U.S. seaports.”
TU.S. travelers and select foreign nationals who prefer to opt out of the facial biometric process can simply request a manual document check from a CBP Officer, consistent with existing requirements for admission into the United States.
