National Identity

Documents
Adapting to a changing European market

R
egulation (EU) 2019/1157 will transform the European national
identity market1 and will be enforced in August 2021. It aims at
harmonizing national identity documents within Europe. It also
intends to strengthen the security of EU citizens’ identity cards, as well
as residence permits issued to foreigners. The majority of EU member
States already issue national ID cards to their citizens. The provision
of polycarbonate cards and the issuance of electronic documents
is commonplace in many countries already, with the remaining EU
countries expected to follow this trend.

1
Countries concerned by the regulation:
EU: Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg,
Malta, the Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain and Sweden.
EEA: Norway, Iceland and Liechtenstein
EFTA: Switzerland
 NATIONAL ID DOCUMENTS: ADAPTING TO A CHANGING EUROPEAN MARKET

Regulation (EU) 2019/1157:

Mandatory card and production site requirements

Besides the new regulation’s main objectives,

A quick glance at Regulation (EU) 2019/1157 governments will also be able to leverage
these secure and smart ID cards to provide
(Article 3)
safer access to eGovernment or private
The new regulation’s main requirements aims at: services and to enroll for digital identity
› Harmonizing security in a world of mobility - All national solutions.
identity documents should be ICAO compliant and
contain a Machine-Readable Zone (MRZ). ID cards will also
have a contactless chip that stores the facial image and
two fingerprints. The chip should contain access control
mechanisms protecting the access to the portrait of the
holder. These requirements will allow the holder’s data to be
verified for travel purposes.

› Enhancing durability - The directive includes the mandatory

inclusion of polycarbonate, a durable material that has high-
impact resistance, or an equivalent synthetic polymeric with
a ten-year duration.

› Increasing protection against fraud – All documents should

implement highly secure background offset printing and
laser-engraved personalization. The inclusion of Diffractive
Optically Variable Image Devices (DOVID) will also protect
against copying.

› Ensuring manufacturing in the EU and Schengen Area

– The regulation states the obligatory production of blank
identity cards in the EU or Schengen associated countries.

Timeline and planning

The Regulation (EU) 2019/1157 is giving member states until August 2021 to start issuing compliant identity cards. The
regulation also incorporates two periods of phasing out in 2026 and 2031 for identity cards already issued that do not
meet the requirements.

All member states to start issuing End of phasing out of the

compliant identity cards «weakest» identity cards
T1: T1 + 5 years:
August 2021 August 2026

Date of application of the End of phasing out of all

Regulation (EU) 2019/1157 remaining non-compliant
T0: identity cards
June 2019 T1 + 10 years:
August 2031
 NATIONAL ID DOCUMENTS: ADAPTING TO A CHANGING EUROPEAN MARKET

IDEMIA’s National ID offer for the European market

IDEMIA proposes a tailor-made travel and eServices offer that is compliant with the regulation and
answers the latest trends in the market.

Compliance with the new regulation IDEMIA’s complementary proposition

Mandatory requirements IDEMIA’s proposition

Standardized ICAO applet

Applications ICAO-compliant
eServices applications for secure access to eGovernment solutions

Contactless or dual chip

Compliant with the latest ICAO standards to secure access to the holder’s information

Extensive memory for biometric data storage

Contactless chip Interoperable, open Java Card platform
Chip and OS Biometrics (face and
fingerprints) Flexible and ready to host third-party applications (certification up to EAL 5+)

High-speed reading performance

State-of-the-art cryptography

Advanced PKI for secure data transfers

Polycarbonate, highly resistant material that is impossible to delaminate. It resists high

ID-1 format MRZ temperatures and pressure, ensuring an over ten-year durability
Material and Polycarbonate
ID-1 format containing a Machine Readable Zone (MRZ)
Duration over ten years
Format Laser-engraved Advanced laser-engraved personalization techniques (including color portrait or 3D effects)
personalization
Personalization software and equipment to support new security features including portrait

All mandatory requirements (DOVID, UV-Fluorescent printing...)

DOVID LASINKTM, a laser engraving technology that generates secure high-quality color portraits
Highly secure background embedded in polycarbonate identity documents
Physical offset printing
Stereo Laser Image (SLITM), a reproduction of an ID card’s primary photo in 3D,
security UV-Fluorescent printing protecting against photo substitution
Rainbow printing
Photo and data interlinking (QR codes, seals)

Other advanced security printing techniques and special inks

In the EU and the

Manufacturing Schengen associated Manufacturing sites in the Netherlands and the Czech Republic
countries

The new Estonian eID card to be released in August 2021 (T1)

Conform to all mandatory SPECIMEN Applications for public and private

requirements eServices

LASINKTM laser engraved Interoperable open Java Card

colour image generated platform
by secret algorithms

Personal code integrated Back side:

in LASINKTM picture Machine Readable Zone
 NATIONAL ID DOCUMENTS: ADAPTING TO A CHANGING EUROPEAN MARKET

End-to-end solutions are part of our services. From enrollment to systems, and from cards to digital, IDEMIA has all
the necessary technical and operational capabilities. We also provide parts of the whole solution such as inlays, blank
documents, personalization systems and personalization services to accompany clients depending on their needs.

Personalization Digital ID

IDEMIA is ready to accompany clients and Governments can leverage eID documents to allow a
National Printing Houses (NPH) with a complete secure onboarding process for digital identity. Thanks
personalization offer. to the contactless or dual interface in eID cards,
IDEMIA customizes solutions that completely citizens can easily create their own mobile identity
match their needs. Our personalization solutions from their government-issued app, using the NFC
include: functionality in their smartphone.

With their digital ID, citizens will have secure access to

› A Software Development Kit (SDK) which online eServices through multifactor authentication
can be integrated with an existing customer and usage of biometric recognition (e.g. face matching).
system They will also be able to use it for in-person verification.

› Installation and configuration of both Building a trusted national digital ID ecosystem to

hardware (e.g. machines, servers, HSMs, card engage the private sector and citizens is essential.
readers) and software (systems, databases) IDEMIA accompanies governments at every step of
the journey towards successful digitalization.

› Services and operations (e.g. defining the

customer’s needs, graphical and electrical
profile design, site configuration and
preparation)

© Copyright 2020. All rights reserved. IDEMIA | EN - 11/20 | Photo: IDEMIA / Adobe Stock
Why IDEMIA?
IDEMIA can provide components as well as hardware, software solutions and services to support National
Printing House (NPHs) with their document migration. With technology and know-how transfers, we help NPHs
keep their autonomy while supporting them in their transformation. IDEMIA also supplies documents (blank and
personalized) and end-to-end identity solutions in the European Union.

Key references for NPHs: Key references for identity solutions:

› France › Portugal › Estonia › Latvia

› Italy › Spain › Slovakia › The Netherlands

(including services
and operations)

All rights reserved. Specifications and information subject to change without notice.
The products described in this document are subject to continuous development and improvement.
All trademarks and service marks referred to herein, whether registered or not in specific countries,
are the property of their respective owners.