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Follow the link to learn morePrime Minister Dmitry Medvedev has endorsed the concept of introducing electronic passports in Russia.
The prime minister's directive, posted on the legal database on Monday, says that the Federal Migration Service will start to issue plastic cards as the main type of identification document in Russia on January 1, 2016.
The issue of current domestic passports will stop at the beginning of 2025 and the validity of such passports will expire on January 1, 2030.
The document said that the government might still revise those dates.
A pilot project will be launched before the electronic IDs become universal in order to test its use.
The introduction of electronic passports is supposed to guarantee the identification of citizens, improve the quality of state services and reduce the scope of forgeries of identification documents.
Besides, a broader use of electronic forms of interaction between citizens, authorities, local governments and organizations will increase budget revenues.
