1. Where it is necessary to create an individual file or to update the facial image referred to in point (d) of Article 16(1) and point (b) of Article 17(1), the facial image shall be taken live.
2. By way of derogation from paragraph 1, in exceptional cases where the quality and resolution specifications set for the enrolment of the live facial image in the EES cannot be met, the facial image may be extracted electronically from the chip of the electronic Machine Readable Travel Document (eMRTD). In such cases, the facial image shall only be inserted into the individual file after electronic verification that the facial image recorded in the chip of the eMRTD corresponds to the live facial image of the third-country national concerned.
3. Each Member State shall transmit once a year a report on the application of paragraph 2 to the Commission. That report shall include the number of third-country nationals concerned, as well as an explanation of the exceptional cases faced.
4. The facial image of third-country nationals shall have sufficient image resolution and quality to be used in automated biometric matching.
5. Within a period of two years following the start of operations of the EES, the Commission shall produce a report on the quality standards of facial images stored in the VIS and on whether they are such that they enable biometric matching with a view to using facial images stored in the VIS at borders and within the territory of the Member States for the verification of the identity of third-country nationals subject to a visa requirement, without storing such facial images in the EES. The Commission shall transmit that report to the European Parliament and to the Council. That report shall be accompanied, where considered appropriate by the Commission, by legislative proposals, including proposals to amend this Regulation, Regulation (EC) No 767/2008, or both, as regards the use of the facial images of third-country nationals stored in the VIS for the purposes referred to in this paragraph.