Starting January 1, 2024, Kazakhstan will implement a mandatory fingerprint registration for citizens when registering passports and identity certificates, according to a briefing by Nurzhan Dzhanabaev, the senior inspector of the Committee of the Migration Service of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Republic.
This measure will apply to all citizens of the country and foreign citizens living in Kazakhstan, with the exception of children under 12 years of age. For children aged 12-16 years, registration will be voluntary.
The fingerprints will be collected during the issuance of identity certificates, passports, and other documents in the designated centers. This requirement is aimed at individuals who are obtaining or replacing documents for various reasons.
The Ministry of Internal Affairs asserts that the fingerprint registration will enhance protection against fraudulent activities and expedite the process of document restoration. Additionally, dactyloscopy, the science of identifying individuals based on their fingerprints, will facilitate the quick identification of individuals in accidents and pave the way for the utilization of biometric data for accessing public services in the future.
In case a citizen loses their passport abroad, they can approach the foreign detachment of Kazakhstan and provide information about their dactyloscopic registration to simplify the document restoration process.
The Ministry of Internal Affairs also underscores the significance of dactyloscopy for individuals with memory loss or in situations where a person cannot provide information about themselves. Dactyloscopic registration can aid in locating missing relatives or identifying individuals without documents who may have ended up in hospitals.
The database will solely contain a unique identifier, with no personal data or IIN personal data. The depersonalization of fingerprints occurs automatically through the system’s structure and architecture. Currently, the authorized body is conducting tests to ensure compliance with information security requirements.