28 March 2012
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EU asks US
to extend deadline for "biometric" passports
As expected EU Commissioner Frattini has formally requested the
USA to shift the deadline for so-called "biometric"
passports from October 2005 to August 2006. Apparently only six
EU states - Belgium, Germany, Austria, Finland, Sweden and Luxembourg
- out of 25 will be ready by October to start issuing the new
passports.
In a letter Frattini said:
“Despite all the progress by the EU member states in reinforcing the security of passports, you are surely aware that critical aspects of the biometric technology, such as date security and interoperability of reading devices, are still being finalised,” he wrote.
“We would urge the Congress to consider a second extension of the deadline, as member states would need until August 28 2006 for the implementation of the facial image in their passports.”
These "biometric"
passports with a "facial image" - which expressed
in lay terms mean that the normal passport photo, supplied with
a postal application, will be scanned and the image placed on
a "chip". This is not a biometric, but it is
all that is required under the ICAO agreed standard (International
Civil Aviation Organisation).
See also: Home
Office statement on UK "biometric" passports
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