National identity card | |
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![]() Finnish version of a national identity card | |
Issued by | ![]() |
National identity cards are issued to their citizens by the governments of all European Economic Area (EEA) member states except Denmark and Ireland. Ireland however issues a passport card which is a valid document in the EEA and Switzerland.[1] Denmark issues simpler identity cards that are not valid as travel documents.[2][3] From 2 August 2021, new identity cards are harmonized as a common identity card model replaced the various formats already in use.[4]
Citizens holding a national identity card, which states citizenship of an EEA member state or Switzerland, can use it as an identity document within their home country, and as a travel document to exercise the right of free movement in the EEA and Switzerland.[5][6][7] However, identity cards that do not state citizenship of an EEA member state or Switzerland, including national identity cards issued to residents who are not citizens, are not valid as travel documents within the EEA and Switzerland.[8][9][10]
As an alternative to presenting a passport, EEA and Swiss citizens are entitled to use a valid national identity card as a stand-alone travel document to exercise their right of free movement in the European Economic Area and Switzerland.[5][6][7] National identity card ownership in most EU countries and Switzerland is much more widespread than passport ownership.[11]
When travelling within the Nordic Passport Union, no identity documentation is legally required by Nordic citizens. When travelling within the Common Travel Area, other valid identity documentation (such as a driving licence) is often sufficient for Irish and British citizens.[12]
At present, Denmark and Iceland do not issue identity cards that are valid as travel documents in the EEA member states and Switzerland.[13] Strictly speaking, it is not necessary for an EEA or Swiss citizen to possess a valid national identity card or passport to enter the EEA and Switzerland. In theory, if an EEA or Swiss citizen can prove their nationality by any other means (e.g. by presenting an expired national identity card or passport, or a citizenship certificate), they must be permitted to enter the EEA and Switzerland. An EEA or Swiss citizen who is unable to demonstrate their nationality satisfactorily must, nonetheless, be given 'every reasonable opportunity' to obtain the necessary documents or to have them delivered within a reasonable period of time.[14][15][16]
Additionally, EEA and Swiss citizens can enter the following countries and territories outside the EEA and Switzerland on the strength of their national identity cards alone, without the need to present a passport to the border authorities:
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Turkey allows citizens of Belgium, Bulgaria,[34] France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Italy, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Spain and Switzerland. Egypt allows citizens of Belgium, France, Germany, Italy, and Portugal to enter using a national identity card for short-term visits.[35][36] Tunisia allows nationals of Austria, Belgium, France, Germany, Italy, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, and Switzerland to enter using a national identity card if travelling on an organized tour. Anguilla, Dominica, and Saint Lucia allow nationals of France to enter using a national ID card, while Dominica de facto also allows nationals of (at least) Germany and Sweden to enter with a national ID card (as of March 2016).[citation needed] Gambia allows nationals of Belgium to enter using a national ID card.[37] The United Kingdom and the Crown Dependencies only allows EEA (except Irish) and Swiss citizens fulfilling specific requirements to use national identity cards (though to enter at the land border Ireland-Northern Ireland, no specific document requirements apply).[38][39][40][41][42] Greenland allows Nordic citizens to use any identification document containing a photo, while citizens from the rest of EU/EFTA must carry a passport.[43]
Although, as a matter of European law, holders of a Swedish national identity card are entitled to use it as a travel document to any European Union member state (regardless of whether it belongs to the Schengen Area or not), Swedish national law did not recognise the card as a valid travel document outside the Schengen Area until July 2015[44] in direct violation of European law. What this meant in practice was that leaving Schengen directly from Sweden (i.e., without making a stopover in another Schengen country) with the card was not possible. This partially changed in July 2015, when travel to non-Schengen countries in the EU (but not outside, even if the destination country accepts the ID card) was permitted.[45]
Similarly, Finnish citizens cannot leave Finland directly for a non-EU/EFTA country with only their ID cards.[46]
At the external border crossing points of the Schengen Area, if a traveller presents a travel document without a machine readable zone and the border guard has 'doubt about his/her identity', the traveller may be requested to undergo a more in-depth 'second line' check.[15] In practice, this means that Greek citizens who present a Greek identity card and Italian citizens who present an Italian paper identity card could be subject to additional checks and delay when entering/leaving the Schengen Area.[47]
With effect from 7 April 2017, it is mandatory for border guards in the Schengen Area to check on a systematic basis the travel documents of all EEA and Swiss citizens crossing external borders against relevant databases.[48] Until 7 April 2017, border guards in the Schengen Area were only obliged to perform a 'rapid' and 'straightforward' visual check for signs of falsification and tampering, and were not obliged to use technical devices – such as document scanners, UV light and magnifiers – when EEA and Swiss citizens presented their passports or national identity cards at external border checkpoints.[49] They were not legally obliged to check the passports/national identity cards of EEA and Swiss citizens against a database of lost/stolen/invalidated travel documents (and, if they did so, they could only perform a 'rapid' and 'straightforward' database check, and could only check to see if the traveller was on a database containing persons of interest on a strictly 'non-systematic' basis where such a threat was 'genuine', 'present' and 'sufficiently serious').[49]
According to statistics published by Frontex, in 2015 the top 6 EU member states whose national identity cards were falsified and detected at external border crossing points of the Schengen Area were Italy, Spain, Belgium, Greece, France and Romania.[50] These countries remained the top 6 in 2016.[51]
There are varying rules on domestic usage of identity documents. Some countries demand the usage of the national identity card or a passport. Other countries allow usage of other documents like driver's licences.
In some countries, e.g. Austria, Finland, Sweden and Iceland national identity cards are fully voluntary and not needed by everyone, as identity documents like driving licences are accepted domestically. In these countries only a minority have a national identity card, since a majority have a passport and a driving licence and don't need more identity documents. This is also true for Ireland where those who have a passport and a driving licence have less need for the passport card. The passport card can be used for travel to 31 countries in the European Union, European Economic Area including Switzerland.[52]
However, even in those EEA countries that impose a national identity card requirement on their citizens (above certain age), it is generally not required to carry the identity cards at all times.
EEA and Swiss citizens exercising their right of free movement in another EEA member state or Switzerland are entitled to use their national identity card as an identification document when dealing not just with government authorities, but also with private sector service providers. For example, where a supermarket in the Netherlands refuses to accept a German national identity card as proof of age when a German citizen attempts to purchase an age-restricted product and insists on the production of a Dutch-issued passport or driving licence or other identity document, the supermarket would, in effect, be discriminating against this individual on this basis of their nationality in the provision of a service, thereby contravening the prohibition in Art 20(2) of Directive 2006/123/EC of discriminatory treatment relating to the nationality of a service recipient in the conditions of access to a service which are made available to the public at large by a service provider.[53] In those EEA countries whose citizens are required by law to obtain a national identity card, only a minority have a passport, since it is not needed for travelling across much of Europe.
National identity cards are often accepted in other parts of the world for unofficial identification purposes (such as age verification in commercial establishments that serve or sell alcohol, or checking in at hotels) and sometimes for official purposes such as proof of identity and nationality to authorities (especially machine-readable cards).
As of 1 July 2021, EEA (except Irish) passports and identity cards are no longer accepted to prove the right to rent in the United Kingdom, so EEA citizens are required to provide evidence of lawful immigration status.[54]
On 13 July 2005, the Justice and Home Affairs Council called on all European Union member states to adopt common designs and security features for national identity cards by December 2005, with detailed standards being laid out as soon as possible thereafter.[55]
On 4 December 2006, all European Union member states agreed to adopt the following common designs and minimum security standards for national identity cards that were in the draft resolution of 15 November 2006:[56][57]
The card can be made with paper core that is laminated on both sides or made entirely of a synthetic substrate.
The data on the card shall contain at least: name, birth date, nationality, a photo, signature, card number, and end date of validity.[58] Some cards contain more information such as height, eye colour, start date of validity, sex, issue place or province, and birthplace.
The biographical data on the card is to be machine readable and follow the ICAO specification for machine-readable travel documents.
The EU Regulation revising the Schengen Borders Code (which entered into force on 7 April 2017 and introduced systematic checks of the travel documents of EU, EEA and Swiss citizens against relevant databases when entering and leaving the Schengen Area) states that all member states should phase out travel documents (including national identity cards) which are not machine-readable.[59]
However, as of 2021, Greece continues to issue solely non-machine readable identity cards, while Italy is in the process of phasing out the issuing of non-machine readable paper booklets in favour of biometric cards. In Europe, Greece was one of the last countries which continued using ID's without a machine readable zone which were not in line with the latest ICAO guidelines.[60]
All EEA electronic identity cards should comply with the ISO/IEC standard 14443. Effectively this means that all these cards should implement electromagnetic coupling between the card and the card reader and, if the specifications are followed, are only capable of being read from proximities of less than 0.1 metres.[61]
They are not the same as the RFID tags often seen in stores and attached to livestock. Neither will they work at the relatively large distances typically seen at US toll booths or automated border crossing channels.[62]
The same ICAO specifications adopted by nearly all European passport booklets (Basic Access Control - BAC) means that miscreants should not be able to read these cards[63] unless they also have physical access to the card.[64] BAC authentication keys derive from the three lines of data printed in the MRZ on the obverse of each TD1 format identity card that begins "A", "C", or "I".[65]
According to the ISO 14443 standard, wireless communication with the card reader can not start until the identity card's chip has transmitted a unique identifier. Theoretically an ingenious attacker who has managed to secrete multiple reading devices in a distributed array (eg in arrival hall furniture) could distinguish bearers of MROTDs without having access to the relevant chip files. In concert with other information, this attacker might then be able to produce profiles specific to a particular card and, consequently its bearer. Defence is a trivial task when most electronic cards make new and randomised UIDs during every session [NH08] to preserve a level of privacy more comparable with contact cards than commercial RFID tags.[66]
The electronic identity cards of Austria, Belgium, Estonia, Finland, Germany,[67] Italy, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Portugal, Slovakia and Spain all have a digital signature application which, upon activation, enables the bearer to authenticate the card using their confidential PIN.[citation needed] Consequently they can, at least theoretically, authenticate documents to satisfy any third party that the document's not been altered after being digitally signed. This application uses a registered certificate in conjunction with public/private key pairs so these enhanced cards do not necessarily have to participate in online transactions.[68]
An unknown number of national European identity cards are issued with different functionalities for authentication while online. Some also have an additional contact chip containing their electronic signature functionality, such as the Swedish national identity card.[66]
Portugal's card had an EMV application but it was removed in newer versions from 16 January 2016.[69][70]
European Union regulation | |
Text with EEA relevance | |
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Title | Regulation (EU) 2019/1157 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 20 June 2019 on strengthening the security of identity cards of Union citizens and of residence documents issued to Union citizens and their family members exercising their right of free movement |
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Made by | European Parliament and Council |
Made under | Art. 21(2) TFEU |
Journal reference | L 188, pp. 67–78 |
History | |
Date made | 20 June 2019 |
Came into force | 10 July 2019 |
Applies from | 2 August 2021 |
Preparative texts | |
Commission proposal | 17 April 2018 |
Current legislation |
A new common format of electronic identity document is intended to replace and harmonize the various identity card models currently in use across the European Union (EU) and the European Economic Area (EEA).[a] In accordance with its own laws, any Member State of the Union shall issue an identity card complying with the requirements of Regulation (EU) 2019/1157 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 20 June 2019 on strengthening the security of identity cards of Union citizens and of residence documents issued to Union citizens and their family members exercising their right of free movement, and articles 3/4/5 state that:[4]
Article 16 states that this Regulation shall apply from 2 August 2021.
Austrian identity card
Belgian identity card
Dutch identity card
Spanish identity card
For several member countries the new requirements do not mean that the design or features of the existing cards change much, since they mostly fulfil the requirements already. For some this means a large redesign. A visible change for all countries is the country code inside the EU flag.
Identity cards not meeting the new requirements shall cease to be valid at their expiry or by 3 August 2031, whichever comes sooner. Identity cards which do not meet the minimum security standards or which do not include a functional machine-readable zone shall cease to be valid by 3 August 2026. Identity cards of persons aged 70 and above on 2 August 2021 which meet the minimum security standards and which have a functional MRZ shall cease to be valid at their expiry.[74]
In addition, the new EU Regulation cannot be applied to travel documents like the passport card issued by Ireland, as stated at point (14) of the introduction chapter.[75]
Implementation throughout the member states is ongoing with various timetables on a per-country basis. Cyprus began issuing identity cards conforming to the harmonised requirements as early as August 2020, becoming the first country to implement the new standard.[76] It was followed by Malta the same month.[77][1] France started pilot testing the new document in select departments in March 2021, with a wider, progressive rollout planned for the following months.[78]
Icelandic identity cards are issued mostly for domestic use. They do not conform to EU minimum security standards and as they are only written in Icelandic are therefore not usable as travel documentation outside of the Nordic countries. This is set to change in 2023 with the introduction of an updated design, in line with EU standards.[79][80][81]
Member states issue a variety of national identity cards with differing technical specifications and according to differing issuing procedures.[82]
Member state | Front | Reverse | Compulsory/optional | Cost | Validity | Issuing authority | Latest version |
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![]() Austria |
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Identity documentation is optional |
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2 August 2021[83] | |
![]() Belgium ![]() |
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National identity card compulsory for Belgian citizens aged 12 or over |
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15 July 2021[84] |
![]() Bulgaria |
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National identity card compulsory for Bulgarian citizens aged 14 or over |
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The police on behalf of the Ministry of the Interior. | 29 March 2010 |
![]() Croatia ![]() |
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National identity card compulsory for Croatian citizens resident in Croatia aged 18 or over |
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2 August 2021 |
![]() Cyprus ![]() |
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National identity card compulsory for Cypriot citizens aged 12 or over |
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12 August 2020 | |
![]() Czech Republic ![]() |
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National identity card compulsory for Czech citizens over 15 years of age with permanent residency in the Czech Republic |
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2 August 2021 |
![]() Denmark |
No national identity card. Danish identity cards (issued by the municipalities) do not state nationality and therefore are not usable as travel documentation outside of the Nordic countries. (See Identity document#Denmark). | Identity documentation is optional (for Danish and Nordic citizens[87]) | — | — | — | — | |
![]() Estonia |
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National identity card compulsory for all Estonian citizens, permanent residents and EU/EEA citizens[citation needed] temporarily residing in Estonia aged 15 or over |
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5 years | Police and Border Guard Board | 23 August 2021 |
![]() Finland ![]() |
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Identity documentation is optional |
Lower fees for online appliction and with passport. |
5 years |
Police |
2 August 2021 |
![]() France ![]() |
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National identity card optional;[90] however, the police have extensive powers to check a person's identity in many situations, up to 4-hour detention to make the necessary verification and take a photograph.[91] |
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10 years[92] |
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15 March 2021[92] |
![]() Germany ![]() |
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National identity card optional; however, a national identity card or passport is compulsory for German citizens aged 16 or over, and valid identity documentation is compulsory for other EEA citizens |
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2 August 2021 |
![]() Greece |
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National identity card compulsory for Greek citizens aged 12 or over |
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15 years | Police | 5 August 2016 |
![]() Hungary ![]() |
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National identity card optional; however, a national identity card, passport or driving licence is compulsory for all Hungarian citizens |
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Ministry of Interior | 2 August 2021 |
![]() Iceland |
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Identity documentation is optional (for Icelandic and Nordic citizens[87]) |
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Indefinite, or until photographic update required. | Registers Iceland (Þjóðskrá Íslands) | 12 June 1965 New law and design 1 December 2023 |
![]() Ireland |
No national identity card. Ireland issues an optional passport card, only if the applicant already has a valid passport booklet, or gets one in the same application. (See Irish passport card). | Identity documentation is optional | — | — | — | — | |
![]() Italy ![]() |
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National identity card optional; however, citizens should be able to prove their identity if stopped by territorial police |
Note: validity must always expire on birthday[97] |
Ministry of the Interior through:
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29 September 2022 | |
![]() Latvia ![]() |
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National identity card optional; however, a national identity card or passport is compulsory for Latvian citizens aged 15 or over. Identity cards will be compulsory starting from 2023.[98] |
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Office of Citizenship and Migration Affairs | 12 October 2021 |
![]() Liechtenstein |
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Identity documentation is optional |
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Immigration and Passport Office, Vaduz | 23 June 2008 |
![]() Lithuania ![]() |
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National identity card optional; however, a national identity card or passport is compulsory for Lithuanian citizens aged 16 or over, and valid identity documentation is compulsory for other EEA citizens |
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Migration Department | 17 August 2021 |
![]() Luxembourg ![]() |
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National identity card compulsory for Luxembourgian citizens resident in Luxembourg aged 15 or over |
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Ministry of the Interior | 2 August 2021 |
![]() Malta |
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National identity card compulsory for Maltese citizens aged 18 or over |
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![]() Netherlands ![]() |
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National identity card optional; however, valid identity documentation is compulsory for all persons aged 14 or over |
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2 August 2021[107] | ||
![]() Norway ![]() |
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Identity documentation is optional |
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Norwegian Police Service | 29 July 2021[109][110] |
![]() Poland ![]() |
National identity card compulsory for Polish citizens resident in Poland aged 18 or over. | Free of charge |
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8 November 2021 | ||
![]() Portugal |
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National identity card (called "Citizen Card") compulsory for Portuguese citizens aged 6 or over |
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Governos Civis | 1 June 2009 |
![]() Romania |
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National identity card compulsory for Romanian citizens aged 14 or over with permanent residence in Romania | 7 RON |
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Ministry of Internal Affairs through the Directorate for Persons Record and Databases Management | 2 August 2021 (Only available in the Cluj County)
2018 (Others - old model) |
![]() Slovakia ![]() |
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National identity card compulsory for Slovak citizens aged 15 or over with permanent residence in Slovakia [111] |
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Police | 1 December 2022 |
![]() Slovenia ![]() |
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National identity card optional; however, a form of ID with photo is compulsory for Slovenian citizens permanently resident in Slovenia aged 18 or over |
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28 March 2022 |
![]() Spain ![]() |
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National identity card compulsory for Spanish citizens aged 14 or over |
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2 August 2021 | |
![]() Sweden ![]() |
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Identity documentation is optional | SEK 400 |
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Swedish Police Authority | 1 January 2022[113] |
![]() Switzerland |
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Identity documentation is optional |
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Federal Office of Police through canton / municipality of residence | 3 March 2023[114][115] |