Protecting the National Security and Welfare of the United States and Its Citizens From Criminal Actors and Other Public Safety Threats

The order directs the Attorney General to provide DHS with access to criminal history record information (CHRI) — fingerprints, arrest records, and conviction data held by the Justice Department — to the maximum extent permitted by law, specifically to support DHS's screening and vetting of travelers and immigrants. It also authorizes the DHS Secretary to exchange CHRI with the border security and immigration authorities of Visa Waiver Program countries, nations with Preventing and Combating Serious Crime agreements, and other trusted allies, but only for the purpose of screening travelers or immigrants seeking to enter those countries.

Any international exchange must be conducted on a reciprocal basis, under a formal bilateral or multilateral agreement that DHS negotiates and that includes privacy safeguards for U.S. persons. The order does not itself establish any such agreements, change underlying criminal records statutes, or create enforceable rights for any party. Implementation is expressly subject to available appropriations and existing law.

DHS screening and vetting officers who will gain broader access to DOJ criminal records, foreign nationals subject to immigration vetting, allied foreign governments eligible to exchange conviction data, and U.S. persons whose criminal history records may ultimately be shared with foreign border authorities under reciprocal agreements.

DHS immigration officers will have wider access to federal criminal databases when vetting travelers and immigrants, potentially flagging more individuals with criminal histories. Allied countries participating in reciprocal agreements could receive U.S. conviction data on their own nationals, and U.S. authorities could receive matching foreign records in return.

The Attorney General must open DOJ-held CHRI to DHS for screening and vetting use. For international exchanges, no sharing can occur until the DHS Secretary negotiates and enters into a bilateral or multilateral agreement containing privacy safeguards — the order grants the authority but does not itself trigger any exchange. Each agreement defines the scope, data protections, and reciprocity terms. The order contains a standard severability clause and limits itself to actions consistent with applicable law and available appropriations.