Biometric visas get $4.4m tech boost

The UK biometrics visa programme has awarded a $4.4m contract to Cross Match Technologies for the supply of fingerprint scanners to UK overseas missions.

The US-based biometric identity company will provide British embassies and consulates around the world with 1,385 of its livescan Guardian scanner devices.

The contract was awarded through the UK Home Office Biometrics Framework Agreement as part of the new visa programme.

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The Guardian scanners will be up and running by the end of the year and Cross Match will be delivering the tech with the help of services company Steria UK.

Head of procurement for UKvisas, Andrew Pestell, said the biometric visas are a key part of the Border and Immigration Agency's (BIA) plan to strengthen UK borders.

He said as the identity of individuals can be fixed at the earliest possible point, it will help ensure only people with permission can travel to the UK.

It was recently reported that the government has been recording more than 100,000 fingerprints per month from foreign nationals applying to come to the UK.

The fingerprints are checked with UK government records to see if the individual is known to the BIA.

The biometric programme has been running since September 2006 and aims to record fingerprints of every foreign national applying for a UK visa by April next year.