VISAS AND RESIDENCE PERMITS: UNIFORM FORMAT
(13044/03)
Letter from Caroline Flint MP, to the
Chairman
Thank you for your letter of 10 December, in
which the Committee asks for further information about the United
Kingdom's ongoing biometric initiatives, and for clarification
about what procedures will be implemented for photographing Muslim
women with veils for the purposes of uniform visas and residence
permits.
Ongoing initiatives in the area of biometrics
being developed in relation to border control issues include:
— Immigration and Asylum Fingerprint
System (IAFS). The introduction of an automated system has allowed
the fast identification of attempts to make multiple applications,
often in different identities. The Application Registration Card
(ARC) with the inclusion of biometrics (fingerprints) secures
the single registered identity and prevents others using it to
improperly claim NASS benefits. There are also links with the
EURODAC system to determine if the person has made a previous
application in another EU country and to NAFIS, the national police
system through the Police/Immigration Fingerprint Exchange (PIFE);
— Visa Immigration and Asylum Fingerprint
System (VIAFS). This is a pilot to capture the fingerprints of
visa applicants in Colombo, Sri Lanka. Data is transmitted back
to the UK for entry into the IAFS database and use in immigration
and asylum cases where identity is in dispute. The pilot is due
to be expanded into six East African countries next year;
— Iris Recognition Immigration System
(IRIS). This is a project to implement an automated border entry
system using iris recognition technology as part of the immigration
control at selected UK airports. Implementation of IRIS follows
a successful trial with frequent travellers conducted at Heathrow
Terminals 3 and 4 in 2002;
— Biometric Passport: the UK Passport
Service and FCO have a joint project underway for the introduction
during 2005 of a UK passport containing a facial image biometric
in a contactless chip in line with current and emerging International
Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) specifications. The key drivers
for the project are UKPS/FCO strategy to reduce passport fraud
and recent US legislation requiring participating countries in
the visa waiver scheme, such as the UK, to start producing passports
with a biometric identifier by October 2004. UKPS will be adopting
the ICAO standard for facial recognition derived from passport
photographs. The UKPS will subsequently launch a passport card
also holding biometric information;
— Biometric trial: UKPS is conducting
a six-month trial of the enrolment process for iris, fingerprint
and facial recognition biometrics for use in identity verification.
This will involve 10,000 members of the public and its primary
focus is on evaluating the application process in practice and
assessing public reaction and concerns. The trial will therefore
further support UKPS (and IND and DVLA) work on improving identity
verification in line with ICAO standards for biometrics. Results
from the trial will help inform the Government's plans to introduce
biometric passports and driving licences, and build a base for
the national identity cards scheme. UKPS signed a contract with
Schlumberger Sema on 27 November 2003 to deliver the six-month
biometric enrolment pilot, to be carried out from January to June
2004;
— Identity Cards: the UK has announced
plans to implement an identity card which will incorporate a biometric.
The passport card and possibly the photocard driving licence will
form part of a family of identity cards to be introduced under
the National Identity Card Scheme. Subject to legislation, the
Government expects that new style passport identity cards will
become available to all those applying for new and replacement
passports from around 2007-8 onwards.
The Committee also asks for clarification of
what procedure will be adopted for obtaining images of Muslim
women who wear a veil. Neither the technical specification nor
the detail of implementation has been finalised. I outlined in
my letter of 26 November the current procedures in place for obtaining
photographs for Application Registration Cards (ARC) for asylum
applications. Muslim women who present themselves at port for
asylum applications accompany a female official to a separate
room or private area. Once there, they unveil for identity verification
in the presence of a female official for the period during which
their image is captured. This, in practice, has presented no apparent
problems and I would once again stress that I expect the same
cultural sensitivity to be applied to the process adopted for
the EU proposal.
I hope this answers your questions and we shall
inform the Committee as soon as the Government has decided whether
or not to opt into the Regulations.
5 January 2004
Letter from Caroline Flint MP to the Chairman
Further to my letter of 26 November regarding
the above proposals, I should like to confirm that the Government
has decided to opt into these measures. This is in line with our
policy to participate in immigration measures to the maximum extent
possible where they are without prejudice to our frontier controls.
The proposals aim to improve significantly the
security of visas and residence permits and in particular strengthen
the link between the visas and passport holder and the individual
concerned. They will provide improved safeguards against false
identity and the forgery of documents. The UK participates in
the original measures on which these build and the Commission
have made clear their intention to use these measures as the basis
for further EU biometric work.
A number of amendments have been made to the
Regulations during negotiations. The key amendments as far as
the UK is concerned is the introduction of a new Recital which
has been inserted into both Regulations following our intervention
which notes that new technological developments should be taken
into account when the Regulations are amended in future. The Explanatory
Memorandum of 20 October indicated that the UK might have difficulties
meeting the 2005 deadline for the integration of the photograph
in the Residence Permit (now amended to 31 December 2005 from
14 August 2005). The position has, however, now improved and the
UK is working to ensure that photographs will be available on
all UK Residence Permits by the end of 2004.
Start up and running costs are estimated at
£60 million with £27 million annual costs for visa biometrics
and £24 million with £15 million continuing costs for
residence permits. Work is continuing to refine these figures.
With regard to the under-resourcing of the national
supervisory bodies on data protection, the Information Commissioner
recognises that should the biometric proposals be adopted, that
extra demands will be placed upon the supervisory bodies, the
cost of which will have to met by individual member-states.
It is expected that the Regulations will be
submitted for political agreement shortly.
10 February 2004
Letter from the Chairman to Caroline Flint
MP
Thank you for your letters of 5 January and
10 February about these proposals, which Sub-Committee F (Home
Affairs) of the Select Committee on the European Union considered
at a meeting on 10 March.
We are grateful for the interesting information
that you provided about the initiatives being taken in the area
of biometrics and welcome the progress that is being made. We
are also pleased to note that the Government have decided to opt
into these measures, and we welcome the fact that the United Kingdom
now expects to be able to meet the 2005 target for inclusion of
photographs in residence permits.
We note the estimates of cost that you provided
but are unclear about the distinction between "running",
"annual" and "continuing" costs. We would
be grateful for clarification of this and for any more detailed
breakdown that you can provide in the light of the further work
to refine the figures that you mention. We also note what you
say about resourcing the Information Commissioner for the additional
work arising from the biometric proposals. We would be grateful
for an assurance that the Government will meet these extra costs.
Finally, what you say about the arrangements
for obtaining photographs for application registration cards for
asylum applications by Muslim women does not quite answer the
question we asked, which is whether photographs of Muslim women
will be taken unveiled for the purposes of uniform visas and residence
permits. We also asked what the current practice of the Saudi
authorities is in photographing Saudi women for the purpose of
issuing passports. Indeed we would be interested to know what
practice is followed in other strict Muslim countries in this
regard.
We would be grateful for your further comments
on these points, in the light of which we would expect to be able
to clear the documents. In the meantime we will continue to hold
them under scrutiny.
10 March 2004
Letter from Caroline Flint MP to the Chairman
Thank you for your letter dated 10 March in
which you asked for further information on whether Muslim women
would be photographed unveiled for the purposes of visas and residence
permits; the breakdown of costs for biometrics in residence permits
and visas; and assurance from the Government that it will provide
the extra costs for the Information Commissioner for additional
work arising from biometric proposals.
The draft regulations do not provide guidance
on what procedure should be undertaken for photographing such
women for the purposes of a facial identifier on a visa or a residence
permit. I consider that is instead a matter for the Article 6
technical committee to consider. I expect the technical committee
to adopt International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) guidance
on this point.
That guidance states that in regard to displayed
identification features of the holder that: "The displayed
portrait shall: a) depict the face of the rightful holder of the
MRTD [Machine Readable Travel Document] in a full-face frontal
pose with both eyes visible, ie captured perpendicular to an imaginary
plane formed parallel to the front surface of the face; or b)
if the additional detail of one ear is required (sometimes referred
to as "half-on profile"), the face shall be at such
an angle to the imaginary plane as to reveal the detail of the
ear while maintaining full-face frontal details on that side of
the face opposite to the exposed ear." That is to say an
unveiled photograph.
You also asked for clarification on the position
of Muslim countries in issuing passports for women. In the vast
majority of cases, both in applying for a visa and on entry in
the UK, passports contain unveiled photographs. There are very
few exceptions to this and usually involve members of the ruling
family.
There may be rare circumstances where an older
passport is produced without a photograph or a photograph where
the person is veiled and where a valid visa is held. In these
circumstances immigration officers at ports of entry would interview
the passenger in depth; for example, asking questions covering
personal and visa issue details and if necessary reference would
be made to the appropriate visa issuing post.
With regard to visa costs, start-up costs for
the entry clearance operation (visa costs) consist of: capital
and resource costs required for hardware costs, office building
work, advertising at each post, post costs relating to furniture
and firecrest terminals, overseas UK-based staff costs. Additional
costs include FCO staffing costs and UK staff costs including
software development, installation and training. These were estimated
at £60 million by UK Visas in November 2003. Running costs
consist of annual salaries for 515 UK and overseas based staff,
the maintenance of hardware, the expansion of FCO Communications
and contactless chips for each visa. These were estimated at £27
million per annum by UK Visas in November 2003.
For residence permits, start-up costs are estimated
to be in the region of £24 million. These consist of equipment,
network, development, training, project team and furniture costs.
Annual running costs are estimated to be in the region of £15
million per annum. These consist of Network and hardware maintenance
in addition to the cost of biometric vignettes and Helpdesk support
and staff costs.
We will further develop cost estimates following
adoption of these regulations and the subsequent discussions of
the technical committee on the technical specifications for the
collection and storage of biometric identifiers.
Regarding the resourcing of the Information
Commissioner, we are considering these costs against the wider
implications for the Commissioner of the increased use of biometrics.
It is expected that the Regulations will be
submitted for political agreement shortly.
1 April 2004
Letter from the Chairman to Caroline Flint
MP
Thank you for your letter of 1 April, which
Sub-Committee F (Home Affairs) of the Select Committee on the
European Union considered on 21 April.
We were very grateful for the additional information
provided about photographing Muslim women and the costs of implementing
these two Regulations. We were disappointed that you were not
able to give a firmer assurance about resourcing the Information
Commission's Office for the increased use of biometrics, and hope
that this important point will not be lost sight of.
We have cleared the document from scrutiny.
21 April 2004
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