Ukraine inches closer to biometric passport production

Production for biometric passports in Ukraine could begin as soon as this year, though some uncertainty around funding persists.

Reported in for-ua.com, the comments about the country’s biometric passports come from Mykola Kovalchuk, chairman of the State Migration Service.

“Everything depends on funding,” Kovalchuk said.

The Ukraine State Migration Service has previously announced plans to complete all the work required to issue biometric passports in the country by 2016 and the project – at the time – was estimated to cost USD $85-100 million.

The new passports will contain an electronic chip with information about the passport holder and fingerprint information can reportedly be added later. Passports will be produced in the form of cards and will be issued no later than 30 calendar days from the date of the submission of a relevant application.

Reported in BiometricUpdate.com, last year, Ukraine President Viktor Yanukovych signed the law which would see the passports introduced, though it hasn’t been an easy process.

Shortly after the law was passed and came into effect, experts said the law would have to be revised, as they say it fell short of the European standards of human rights protection.

According to a recently-published report “Global Biometric Systems Market Forecast and Opportunities, 2018,” increasing security requirements for public security, border control management, national identity,  as well as e-passports are acting as growth driver for the biometrics industry as a whole.

 

Article Topics

biometric passport  |  epassport  |  fingerprint  |  government  |  immigration  |  travel and tourism  |  Ukraine