Serbia adopts biometric ID framework for refugees

Serbia has adopted a legal framework for issuing biometric ID cards to people with refugee status in the country, in a move that seeks to advance national efforts towards legal identity inclusion and improve access to public services.

The rulebook was gazetted on August 19, went into effect on August 27, and will be applicable as from October 1, according to the Center for Research and Social Development IDEAS.

The legal framework is titled “Rulebook on the Content and Design of the Asylum Application Form and Identity Cards for Asylum-Seekers, Persons Granted Asylum and Persons Granted Temporary Protection.”

Officials say the measure fulfills a commitment Serbia made in 2023 during the Global Refugee Forum, to issue biometric ID cards to individuals who have been granted asylum in the country, as well as to other persons with subsidiary protection. Those who are still in the process of being granted asylum are not eligible for the new card.

With the new legislation, authorities have said the ID card will be fully biometric, and will replace the old version which was often rejected by institutions, leading to the inability by many of its holders to access important public services. The new polycarbonate card will include a biometric chip, advanced security features, a machine-readable zone, and will display information in Serbian and English.

The framework, among other things, also allows for the use of qualified electronic signatures where a holder can request a qualified electronic signature certificate stored directly on the credential’s chip. It also introduces the Foreign National Identification Number which will be written on all ID documents issued within the asylum ecosystem.

According to the government, the novelty will go a long way in resolving a structural friction point in its migration management framework which was hitherto largely paper-based, and which gave room for so many administrative hurdles.

UNHCR praises legal ID push

In the wake of the development, the country representation of the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) lauded the Serbian government for its commitment to legal identity inclusion. The UNHCR called the move “an important step forward” aimed at improving the rights of those under international protection in the country.

“Reliable and widely recognised identity documents are essential for refugees to exercise their rights and build independent lives,” the UNHCR representative in Serbia, Soufiane Adjali, said.

The body said it remains available to “further support efforts aimed at introducing higher quality identity documents for asylum seekers and persons under temporary protection, in line with international standards and good practices.”

The UN agency also praised Cameroon last year when the President issued a new legal framework in a similar move to facilitate the issuance of legal identity documents to refugees and other forcibly displaced persons in the country, which is helping them access services. Rwanda is also issuing ID cards to refugees in camps.

At the ID4Africa AGM in May, a UNHCR official pressed governments around the world to strengthen their identity systems and render them more inclusive by implementing policies and frameworks that factor in refugees and stateless persons.

Article Topics

biometric identification  |  biometrics  |  digital ID  |  legal identity  |  refugee registration  |  Serbia  |  UNHCR