McALLEN, Texas (Border Report) — Federal officials say asylum-seekers who travel from airports along the border to the interior of the U.S. face additional screenings, and they stressed that the government does not pay for their travel.
In response to inquiries by Border Report, officials with the Transportation Security Administration and Department of Homeland Security outlined the use of the CBP One app and enhanced screening methods that federal agents use at airports to determine whether asylum-seekers may pass through checkpoints to airline gates.
“Noncitizens without acceptable forms of ID must undergo additional, more robust screenings to fly within the United States. The use of CBP One to verify noncitizens’ identities allows TSA to verify that individuals are who they claim to be and that they have been vetted and processed by DHS into an appropriate immigration pathway,” a DHS spokesperson said.
This collaboration between U.S. Customs and Border Protection and TSA — which the DHS spokesperson characterized as an “enhanced security program” — began in 2021.
This involves Border Patrol agents and CBP officers taking photos of asylum-seekers and entering them into the CBP One app database upon their encounter at the U.S. border or federal processing site. TSA agents use these photos to help properly identify the person in front of them at the airport checkpoint.
A TSA spokesperson told Border Report that the TSA agents who check travel documents also take photos of the immigrant in front of them, but if there is no camera at the desk, they use photos in the CBP One app, as well as other identification the migrant has to make a visual comparison.
“These individuals are most commonly awaiting a hearing before an immigration judge and have a legal basis to remain in the United States for that hearing,” the DHS spokesperson said.
Asylum-seekers who are paroled into the United States as they await their immigration court hearings are issued an Alien Registration Number, or A-number, which is a unique individual number given to each asylum-seeker and is linked to their immigration court case. A-numbers are searchable and connected on the CBP One app and also is used by agents to help verify identity.
Border Patrol agents say the presentation of fraudulent documents at airports is a growing problem, but increased technology, like the app, is assisting officials to verify identity.
If a person does not have an acceptable form of identification — an A-number is not considered an acceptable ID by TSA — then they are subject to having their bags and person searched and questioned as part of the “enhanced screening,” a spokesperson told Border Report.
According to the TSA website, the agency says it will accept “alternative identification for use in special circumstances,” and that is in coordination with DHS counterparts. Identification TSA considers acceptable at U.S. airports includes the following:
- State-issued Enhanced Driver’s License
- U.S. passport
- U.S. passport card
- DHS trusted traveler cards (Global Entry, NEXUS, SENTRI, FAST)
- U.S. Department of Defense ID, including IDs issued to dependents
- Permanent resident card
- Border crossing card
- An acceptable photo ID issued by a federally recognized, Tribal Nation/Indian Tribe
- HSPD-12 PIV card (federal ID issued to government employees and some contractors.)
- Foreign government-issued passport
- Canadian provincial driver’s license or Indian and Northern Affairs Canada card
- Transportation worker identification credential
- U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services Employment Authorization Card (I-766)
- U.S. Merchant Mariner Credential
- Veteran Health Identification Card (VHIC)
“Recent reports that noncitizens have lower security bars for traveling on domestic flights are false,” the DHS spokesperson said.
Who pays?
There also are rumors that the federal government pays travel expenses for asylum-seekers, but the agency says that neither DHS nor Border Patrol covers migrants’ travel costs when they are legally paroled into the U.S. Federal agents don’t transport migrants to airports for their travel either.
However, there are several nonprofits and non-governmental organizations that assist asylum seekers after they are released from DHS custody. Those organizations — like Catholic Charities of the Rio Grande Valley, and Team Brownsville — for years have helped migrants navigate air and bus travel schedules, and give travel advice.
In addition, all migrants who are traveling must abide by U.S. rules and regulations.
Seats given up to standby flyers are at the discretion of airlines, which advise travelers — especially those in the Rio Grande Valley — to get to airports early, up to two hours before their flight, to ensure their seat is not given away.
An investigation by Border Report found far more travelers fly out of McAllen International Airport and Valley International Airport, in Harlingen, Texas, than fly into it. In 2023, there were 15% more people who flew out of McAllen’s airport than arrived. About 11% more people took off than landed in Fiscal Year 2023 from Valley International Airport, about 40 miles east, according to airport data.
Most asylum-seekers who are legally released will try to board pre-dawn flights, airport officials tell Border Report.
The director of Valley International Airport recommends travelers arrive an hour before their flight.
American Airlines and United Airlines both told Border Report that travelers should check in via their mobile apps as soon as available. American Airlines recommends travelers arrive at the airport two hours before U.S. flights and three hours prior to international flights. United Airlines suggests arriving 45 minutes before a flight with bags to check.
Sandra Sanchez can be reached at SSanchez@BorderReport.com.