Charlotte Douglas Airport tests new biometric screening to cut Customs wait times and enhance CX

August 06, 2025

Charlotte Douglas International Airport (CLT) is testing Enhanced Primary Processing to reduce wait times at Customs. CLT is one of four airports where U.S. CBP is testing the new biometric screening.

Charlotte Douglas International Airport (CLT) – a Corporate Partner of the FTE Digital, Innovation & Startup Hub – is testing Enhanced Primary Processing (EPP) to reduce wait times at U.S. Customs for most travellers.

CLT is one of four sites, along with Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport, Denver International Airport, and Seattle-Tacoma International Airport, where U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) is testing the new biometric screening.

CBP calls it a game changer for travellers. “We can get passengers through faster while completing our CBP processes, and the likelihood of a passenger missing their connecting flights is significantly reduced,” said Acting Port Director Cherrise Montgomery.

The facial comparison technology is designed to create a more secure and seamless process for U.S. citizens entering and exiting the country. It also prevents CLT’s federal inspection station and primary inspection hall from becoming overcrowded with passengers arriving simultaneously on multiple international flights.

Travellers who have not already completed their CBP processing in another country will arrive at CLT and present themselves for processing by walking up to one of the designated kiosks. A camera linked to CBP’s Travel Verification System compares live facial images with existing photos from the passengers’ travel documents and the airline manifest, which the airlines transmit 24 hours before arrival.

Once past the kiosk, the traveller is directed to a CBP officer to complete their declaration of items purchased or obtained while abroad that they are bringing back with them. Then the passenger is cleared to exit and continue their travels or directed to complete further inspection.

Passengers who choose not to have their photo taken will be redirected to a CBP officer to complete their processing. Even though only U.S. citizens are eligible to pass through EPP, the benefits, including shorter wait times, indirectly extend to non-U.S. citizens.