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Washington – U.S. Customs and Border Protection announced today that 54 percent of the Radio Frequency Identification – or RFID – technology upgrade being deployed nationwide has been completed.

This upgrade, part of the Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative, is being installed at more than 350 lanes at 39 ports of entry on the northern and southern borders to help streamline border crossings while enhancing security. These 39 ports process more than 95 percent of land border travel volume.

RFID technology enables CBP to wirelessly read the identification number embedded in travel documents such as passport cards and enhanced driver’s licenses as travelers approach border crossings. This identification number is used to retrieve biographic information in advance of inspection, eliminating manual data entry by CBP officers and expediting passenger processing by more efficiently verifying identity and citizenship.

This technology also allows CBP to read multiple cards in a single vehicle simultaneously, further expediting processing while increasing the ability of inspecting officers to focus on travelers seeking to enter the United States. No personally identifiable information is stored on a card’s RFID tag — only a unique number that connects to a CBP-secured database with the traveler’s information. Travel documents enabled with RFID technology are being issued with attenuation sleeves to offer further privacy protections.

“We are very pleased at the current high compliance with document requirements, and want to encourage all travelers to apply now for a passport card, NEXUS or SENTRI card, or enhanced driver’s license to realize the benefits from this new technology,” said CBP Assistant Commissioner for Field Operations, Thomas S. Winkowski. “This technology is a critical upgrade to many ports of entry that simply weren’t built to handle the volume of traffic we see. The use of RFID provides a valuable tool for both travelers and our frontline officers.”

CBP has conducted numerous local press events with state and local partners upon completion of the technology installation in Blaine, Wash.; Nogales, Ariz.; Detroit and Buffalo, N.Y. this winter, and events in San Diego, and El Paso, are slated for the coming weeks as the technology upgrades are completed at those sites. By the end of March, CBP anticipates that 85 percent of the planned RFID deployment will be complete.

This milestone comes months before the June 1, 2009 implementation date for WHTI, which requires travelers – including U.S. and Canadian citizen travelers – to present an approved travel document to enter the United States at land or sea ports of entry. The approved documents include a passport, passport card, NEXUS, SENTRI or FAST trusted traveler program card, or a state or province-issued enhanced driver’s license. U.S. and Canadian citizen travelers under age 16 need to present only a birth certificate or alternative proof of citizenship.

The Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative is the joint Department of Homeland Security and Department of State plan that implements a key 9/11 Commission recommendation and Congressional mandate to establish document requirements for travelers entering the United States who were previously exempt, including citizens of the United States, Canada and Bermuda. For more information on acceptable documents and how to apply for them, visit www.GetYouHome.gov. ( www.GetYouHome.gov )

U.S. Customs and Border Protection is the unified border agency within the Department of Homeland Security charged with the management, control and protection of our nation's borders at and between the official ports of entry. CBP is charged with keeping terrorists and terrorist weapons out of the country while enforcing hundreds of U.S. laws.