Putin signed a decree on a “digital passport”

Russian President Vladimir Putin signed decree, equating the presentation of information from identification documents through the Gosuslugi mobile application to the presentation of the documents themselves. The document was published on the legal information portal.

“To establish that the submission by citizens of the Russian Federation of information contained in identification documents of a citizen of the Russian Federation, or other documents issued to citizens of the Russian Federation by government bodies of the Russian Federation, in electronic form using the mobile application of the federal state information system “Unified portal of state and municipal services (functions)” “, equals <...> to present the specified documents,” the text of the document says.

The government of the Russian Federation, in agreement with the FSB, must determine specific cases in which the presentation of an electronic version of a document can replace a paper one. In addition, during this period they need to think through the operating procedure of the application and the list of documents, information from which can be presented using the mobile application, as well as the composition and procedure for processing this information. In addition, the Cabinet of Ministers will have to work out the procedure for maintaining a register of data on legal entities and the types of their activities for which a digital identity card is used. This register will be maintained by the Ministry of Digital Development.

The use of a mobile application for identification is used only on a voluntary basis, the document emphasizes. The decree comes into force on September 18.

Ministry of Digital Development back in March 2021 prepared a draft presidential decree, according to which digital passports with legal force were to begin operating in Moscow, the Moscow region and Tatarstan, and from 2023 the initiative was planned to be extended to all other regions. But this document was not signed.

At the end of August 2022, the Ministry of Digital Development proposed to launch a service on Gosuslugi, with the help of which Russians will be able to confirm their identity in everyday situations. The department noted then that the service could be used when making, for example, purchases in a store or to confirm the right to free travel.

In February of this year, Minister of Digital Development Maksut Shadayev, during a meeting between Putin and the government, said that in 80% of all cases in everyday life, you can do without a paper passport, replacing it with a smartphone. In April 2023, Ministry of Digital Development published a new draft presidential decree, which stated that citizens on a voluntary basis will be able to use the “State Services” application to present a passport, as well as a driver’s license or military ID.