Israels mandatory biometric ID system causes issues lineups at airports

Author: huifan   Time: 2017-08-21

In the first month of Israel’s mandatory biometric identity documents initiative, 15 percent of applicants requesting new passports or identity cards have declined having their fingerprints added to the database, according to a report by Haaretz.

Israel officially introduced the exclusive biometric passports and ID cards system on June 1, following several extensions of the pilot phase.

Under the new procedures, a high-resolution facial photograph is automatically stored in the database, while the applicant is given the option to submit their fingerprints.

Those applicants who refuse to submit their fingerprints are issued passports or identity cards that expire in five years instead of 10. Meanwhile, children under 16 do not have to submit their fingerprints to the database.

The Population and Immigration Authority said that 107,000 passports and 65,000 identity cards were issued in June.