Under the change, visa applicants would need to submit their fingerprints and possibly other biometric information to be entered into a new database before they are permitted to submit applications online.

14, officials directed the Department of Homeland Security to begin purchasing fingerprinting machines to ship to consulates abroad, according to a “summary of conclusions” document reviewed by the Journal.

The Department of Homeland Security referred comment to the National Security Council, which declined to comment for this article.