Starting with 1 January 2007, passports containing electronic chips will be put into circulation for the Romanian citizens. The passports will include a storage system (probably RFID) for personal data, including a facial image and digital fingerprints.
The present passports will preserve their validity and they will be replaced at the request of the citizens. According to a draft Government Decision under public debate the producer of the electronic passports will be designated by international bidding. The sole supplier must provide the necessary documents and technique for the introduction of the electronic system at EU standards. The provider will finance the project and will be further on reimbursed in instalments as established by the contract. The provider, with the agreement of the Ministry of Finance, will also establish and update the fee to be paid by the citizens when obtaining the passports.
The decision to use only electronic passports will not be the subject of a law adopted by the Parliament and there have been no discussions so far on the privacy and security concerns raised by usage of the RFID technology.
The Romanian officials, as in other eastern European countries, just indicated that the European Union is requesting such a change and therefore no special debate was needed on the decision. The substantiation note accompanying the draft Government decision says: "At the European level, it was considered that the introduction of passports containing electronic information will increase the prevention of person substitution or counterfeit, will facilitate more rapid control procedures at the borders and will further on allow exercising the right to free circulation in those states having imposed such a travel document".
Electronic passports will enter into circulation on 1 January 2007 (in
Romanian only, 27.04.06)
http://www.hotnews.ro/articol_47338-Pasapoartele-electronice-vor-fi-pu...
Romanians will have electronic passports (in Romanian only, 27.04.06)
http://stiri.rol.ro/stiri/2006/04/romanii_vor_avea_pasapoarte_electron...
EDRI-gram : New biometric passports in Slovenia (1.03.2006)
http://www.edri.org/edrigram/number4.4/slovenia
EDRI-gram : No delay for EU biometric passports (6.04.2005)
http://www.edri.org/edrigram/number3.7/biometrics