UAE: Passport, ID issuance, renewal services to be reduced to one step, authorities announce

The Federal Authority for Identity, Citizenship, Customs and Port Security (ICP) on Wednesday said it has streamlined the process for the issuance of passports for Emiratis, as well as Emirates ID and residency permits for expatriates.

Previously, these services required four steps, but now they have been streamlined to a single step, making the process more efficient and convenient for customers.

The move is part of the UAE’s Zero Government Bureaucracy programme.

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To simplify the application process, several fields have been eliminated from the service requests. In the case of passport services, four out of ten fields have been removed, and for the ID card and residence permit services, six fields have been eliminated. The customer's last registered address is now displayed, and all remaining fields are automatically filled out based on the principle of requesting data once.

Attachments previously required for these services have also been reduced. The personal photo attachment is no longer necessary for passport services, and for ID card and residence permit services, all three main attachments, including the passport attachment, the summary of registration for citizens, and the personal photo, have been eliminated.

Data and photos are now retrieved from the systems, with the option for the customer to change the photo if desired. Additionally, the need for a passport loss circular document has been replaced by an electronic circular, and the health insurance document for residents is retrieved through institutional linkage.

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