Several other countries have expressed interest in issuing  their own identification cards to their citizens living in the United States  but as of late 2003 had not yet done so. CID Cards Are Issued to Help Identify the Citizenship of Persons Residing in a Foreign Country, and Some Institutions Accept Mexican and Guatemalan CID Cards as Valid Identification

		Countries May Issue CID Cards to Facilitate Consular Notification

CID cards are issued to help identify the citizenship of persons residing in  a foreign country. Thus, CID cardholders can be either undocumented  aliens living in the United States or legal residents. Identity Verification Procedures and Security Features Vary, and Some CID Cards May Not Ensure Cardholder’s Identity

		Mexico Has Taken Steps to Improve Identity Verification Procedures for Its CID Card Issuance Process, but Risks Remain

A Mexican citizen residing in the United States who seeks to obtain a  Mexican CID card is required to present to the Mexican consular field  office, in person, three types of documents: proof of Mexican nationality,  proof of identity, and proof of local address (see table 1 for types of  required documentation). AAMVA also expressed concerns about the Mexican CID card and its  issuance procedures. 3.) No  other document security features were included in these cards. The Homeland Security  Council is leading a task force of executive branch agencies examining  this issue. While Treasury does not prohibit or endorse the acceptance of CID cards,  an FBI official testified before Congress in June 2003 that the Mexican CID  card is not a reliable form of identification. For example, if a card were  fraudulently obtained under a false identity, it could be then used to get a  driver’s license in some states. DHS also echoed the FBI’s  concerns over use of a CID card as a breeder document for obtaining other  forms of identification, which in turn may be used for criminal purposes. The State Department has not adopted a policy on foreign-issued  identification documents or CID cards. Recommendation for Executive Action

We are recommending that the Homeland Security Council direct its task  force, in consultation with key federal agencies, to complete its efforts to  develop policies and implement consistent guidance that would reconcile  potential conflicts among federal agencies and enable state and local  governments, financial institutions, and others to assess the authenticity of  CID cards issued by foreign governments. DHS also said that CID cards should not be considered of greater concern  than other identity documents used in the United States and that the  administration’s position on CID cards is clear: they are not acceptable as  proof of legal presence in the United States. To determine steps Mexico and Guatemala have taken to verify the  identities of CID card applicants and incorporate security features in CID  cards, we interviewed officials from the Mexican and Guatemalan  embassies and consulate offices to obtain information and documentation  about their CID card programs. To determine the positions and  policies of federal agencies regarding the usage and acceptance of CID  cards, we interviewed officials from the Department of the Treasury, DHS,  the Department of Justice, and the Department of State, and reviewed  testimony by the latter three agencies. U.S.
Why GAO Did This Study

Several state and local government agencies and financial institutions accept consular identification (CID) cards, which are issued by foreign governments to their citizens living abroad. Mexico issued more than 2.2 million CID cards in 2002-2003 and Guatemala issued approximately 89,000 from mid-2002 to 2003. Critics of CID cards say their acceptance facilitates the unlawful stay within the United States of undocumented aliens and may provide opportunities for terrorists to remain undetected in this country. GAO examined (1) the purpose of a CID card and how Mexican and Guatemalan CID cards are being used in the United States, (2) steps Mexico and Guatemala have taken to verify the identities of CID card applicants and incorporate security features in CID cards now used in the United States, and (3) the positions and policies of federal agencies regarding CID cards.

What GAO Found

Consular identification cards are issued by some governments to help identify their citizens living in a foreign country. The cards do not certify legal residence within a country; thus, cardholders may be either legal or undocumented aliens. CID cards benefit the bearers by enabling them, in some instances, to use this form of identification to obtain driver's licenses, open bank accounts, show proof of identity to police, and gain access to other services. Mexico and Guatemala each take multiple steps to help ensure that the process for qualifying applicants seeking to obtain CID cards verifies the applicants' identities. After receiving criticism about the reliability of its CID card, Mexico took steps to improve identity verification procedures for its CID card issuance process. However, the Mexican issuance policy still relies on visual, rather than computer-based, verification of some documents used to obtain CID cards, including birth certificates that the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) says may be fraudulently obtained. Both Mexico and Guatemala incorporate a variety of security features in their CID cards, such as holographic imagery. However, officials of the Department of Homeland Security's (DHS) Bureau of Immigration and Customs Enforcement warn that incorporating technical security features into identification documents such as CID cards does not guarantee their authenticity. Federal agencies hold different and, in some cases, conflicting views on the usage and acceptance of CID cards, and no executive branch guidance is yet available. A Homeland Security Council task force of executive branch agencies is reviewing identification document security but had not issued its findings at the time of GAO's review. The Department of the Treasury adopted a regulation in 2003 that, in effect, allows CID card acceptance, while an FBI official has stated that the Mexican CID card, in particular, is not a reliable form of identification and that its acceptance could support false identities. DHS expressed security concerns as well. The State Department has publicly expressed concerns about the impact restricting CID card use might have on U.S. citizens abroad, for example, if the United States had to issue its own CID cards in an emergency.