In Russia, preparing new electronic passports to replace the old paper

Currently preparatorythe process of transferring Russian citizens to a new passport format, which is due to begin in 2021 and be completed in 2024. However, to implement the program for replacing paper passports with the infrastructure involved in the process (the Government services portal and the Unified Identification and Authentication System), these organizations should be given a clear government concept on the design and technology of new electronic passports by the end of the summer of 2019.

Currently, two majorElectronic passport option: plastic card with or without a chip. The cost of a variant using chips is much more expensive, at 144 billion rubles, than the second option. However, a passport with a chip is more reliable, secure, and carries more information: fingerprints and an electronic signature of citizens can be stored on the chip. The validity of such a passport is 10 years.

The second, more economical option impliesthe use of a special mobile application that will relieve citizens of the need to carry a paper version of a passport or driver's license.

Given the timing of the introduction of electronic passports,already by 2023, all citizens of the Russian Federation will have to obtain a digital profile, which will provide identification for binding all documents. In the future, the introduction of electronic visas is also possible. The project on the introduction of electronic passports is being implemented within the framework of the national program "Digital Economy".