The U.S. federal government, led by the Department of Homeland Security (“DHS”) has taken great efforts and incurred great cost to develop technology and systems to track individuals as they come into the U.S. There are also programs afoot, specifically the Entry/Exit system with Canada, that helps track individuals as they leave the U.S. For more details, see the Wilson Center and its review of the Entry-Exit Systems in North America.
This tracking is very specific and part of the TECS database that is operated and managed by the DHS. The TECS database has been discussed in prior posts, including Does the IRS investigate United States Citizens (USCs) and Lawful Permanent Residents (LPRs) residing overseas?
See also, an earlier post that discusses the TECS database and its usage by the Internal Revenue Service in U.S. Enforcement/Collection of Taxes Overseas against USCs and LPRs – Legal Limitations
This topic will become even more relevant starting in 2015 as the IRS collects financial and account information via FATCA of USCs and LPRs residing in various countries throughout the world.
A series of posts dedicated to this topic will be made, including by guest immigration lawyers, discussing various legal implications of the tracking of U.S. citizens and LPRs.
