New York City Biometric Identifier Information Law

N.Y.C. Admin. Code §§ 22-1201 to 22-1205 (Local Law 2021/003)

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In force since 9 July 2021.

A personal data rule binding private bodies.

As of 29 August 2026.

What it requires

If you are a commercial establishment in New York City collecting, retaining, converting, storing, or sharing biometric identifier information, including from scraped or captured photos processed into a face-geometry scan, post clear and conspicuous signage disclosing that practice.
Never sell, lease, trade, or otherwise profit from biometric identifier information collected from a New York City commercial establishment's customers; this ban carries no notice-and-cure period before a lawsuit.
An aggrieved person can sue you directly under this ordinance's private right of action; a signage violation gives you 30 days to cure before suit, but a sale or profit violation does not.

What this law does

Drafted with AI from the cited sources under the direction of UnGovr staff. UnGovr holds editorial responsibility for this page.

The ordinance applies only to a commercial establishment, a place of entertainment, retail store, or food and drink establishment. Section 22-1202(a) requires clear, conspicuous signage disclosing the collection, retention, conversion, storage, or sharing of biometric identifier information, defined to include a retina or iris scan, fingerprint, voiceprint, or hand or face geometry scan, or other identifying characteristic.

Section 22-1202(b) flatly bans selling, leasing, trading, sharing in exchange for anything of value, or otherwise profiting from biometric identifier information.

Section 22-1203 creates a private right of action: an aggrieved person may sue, with a 30-day notice-and-cure period required before suing over a signage violation but no notice-and-cure required for a sale or profit violation under section 22-1202(b), and a prevailing party may recover statutory damages, attorneys' fees and costs, and injunctive relief.

It is a municipal law, narrower in scope than a statewide biometric statute because it is limited to commercial establishments' customer-facing collection and does not apply outside New York City, and its private right of action is stated in the code text. Section 22-1204 exempts government agencies entirely, and exempts financial institutions and non-analyzed photo or video capture from the disclosure duty specifically.

When LexLint raises it

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Read the law

official municipal code, American Legal Publishing code library (codelibrary.amlegal.com)

Every line above is drawn from the primary source linked here, read on the date shown. This is a research summary, not legal advice.

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