Experimentation on issuing the Electronic Identity Card to Italians living in countries outside Europe has begun. The first phase of the initiative involves eight diplomatic-consular representations: the Embassies in Tel Aviv, Ottawa and San Josè de Costa Rica, and the Consulates in Vlora, San Francisco, Mar del Plata, Izmir and Cape Town. The initiative follows the successful issuance of the Card in Europe: almost 120,000 Electronic Identity Cards were issued by the European offices in 2022 alone – more than 260,000 in total since the project’s launch in 2019.
Italian Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation Antonio Tajani stated that “this is an essential step to respond to a primary need of our compatriots abroad. The success of the experimentation is crucial to progressively extend the issuance of the Electronic Identity Card, with an increasingly widespread distribution and with the aim of being able to provide all Italians abroad with a secure and technologically advanced identity document”.
The progressive extension of the issuance of the Electronic Identity Card abroad will allow an increasing number of Italians to have access to a digital identity, which is fundamental for interacting with the Italian Public Administration.