90% of Passports To Be e-Passports by 2016
Date: 07 September 2011

Within five years 90% of passport holders will be using e-passports that integrate a smart card IC chip. This is one of the conclusions drawn from IMS Research’s recent report “Electronic Government and Health Care ID Cards – World – 2011.”

A rapid migration from paper or machine readable passports to smart card-based passports (complying with the ICAO standard for ePassports) started in 2007. This has led to nearly half of all passports now in use being e-passports.

“This trend is set to continue” stated the report author Alex Green. “There are still a few countries around the world that are not yet issuing e-passports. However, most have started and with the typical five to ten year replacement rates for passports, it is only a matter of time before all passports in circulation are e-passports.”

The report goes on to explore to what extent biometrics are being recorded on these e-passports. Interestingly, even for passports issued in 2010, in the majority of cases no biometric data is held on these secure ICs except for a digital image of the holders face.

IMS Research forecast that this will change. “By 2014, the situation is forecast to have been reversed” states Green. “By this time the majority of passports being issued will also include additional biometric data such a one or more finger print, iris scans, etc.”

The e-passport market is examined for 40 countries in IMS Research’s report “Electronic Government and Healthcare ID Cards – World – 2011”. Similar analysis is also provided for the national ID cards, healthcare cards, electronic driver’s licenses and a number of other government related card types.

Editors Note :

For more information, please contact:

Susan Revin, Press Manager T: +44 (0) 1933 402255 Susan.Revin@imsresearch.com

Alex Green, Senior Research Director T: +44 (0) 1933 402255 Alex.Green@imsresearch.com

About IHS Inc. (www.ihs.com)

IHS (NYSE: IHS) is the leading source of information, insight and analytics in critical areas that shape today’s business landscape. Businesses and governments in more than 165 countries around the globe rely on the comprehensive content, expert independent analysis and flexible delivery methods of IHS to make high-impact decisions and develop strategies with speed and confidence. IHS has been in business since 1959 and became a publicly traded company on the New York Stock Exchange in 2005. Headquartered in Englewood, Colorado, USA, IHS employs more than 5,600 people in more than 30 countries around the world.

About IMS Research:

IMS Research is a leading independent supplier of market research and consultancy to the global electronics industry, offering syndicated market studies, custom research and consultancy services. Clients include most of the household names in the industry. IMS Research has offices in Europe, the US, China, Taiwan, South Korea, and Japan. To find out more, contact IMS Research: enquiries@imsresearch.com; T: +44 (0) 1933 402255; http://imsresearch.com

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