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EU: Statewatch Briefing: ID Cards in the EU: Current state of play

01 August 2010

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Statewatch Briefing: ID Cards in the EU: Current state of play (pdf)

Having laid down measures to introduce biometrics (eg: fingerprints) for visas, resident third country nationals and then EU passports the Council of the European Union (27 governments) is now embarking on "harmonising" national ID cards (which in the Schengen area are used as travel documents). This will cover the inclusion of biometrics and using national ID cards for access to e-government services (like social benefits, libraries and healthcare). This is the start of a process of "soft-law making" over which the European and national parliaments have no say.

The Statewatch survey shows:

- 17 countries make it mandatory for their citizens to have an ID card, four do not.
- 13 countries issue traditional ID cards, eight issue cards containing contact and/or RFID chips, two countries do not currently issue ID cards (Norway, UK)
- Of the eight countries that issue electronic ID cards with the capacity to store biometric data, six have chosen to do so (Belgium, Italy, Lithuania, Portugal, Spain and Sweden)

Sources: [1] EU doc no: 5299/1/10 and [2] EU doc no: 9949/10

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