Written answer
Passport Services
72. Deputy Catherine Callaghan asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade for an update on a digital strategy that works towards digital passports for those who want to avail of them in the future, as part of better digital public services; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [40753/26]
Comment on this
The Irish Passport Services continues to be at the forefront of modernisation globally. In 2025 a new passport processing software was successfully released, replacing legacy software and creating efficiencies and more secure processing of applications. In the next two years, the Passport Service will launch a new passport book and passport card, as well as new passport integrity systems and a new online application service for both passport and foreign birth registration applications.
Alongside the above programme, the Passport Service is committed to researching and working towards the development of a digital passport, as stated in Goal 2 of the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade’s Statement of Strategy 2026-2028, and in the Programme for Government: Securing Ireland’s Future.
The Passport Service is currently engaging in discussions with European partners to complete an EU-funded pilot for digital passport use cases, which will trial use cases for a digital passport in conjunction with the physical passport. Previous pilots in Europe have been focused within the Schengen area, and as Ireland is a non-Schengen member of the EU, the Passport Service is uniquely positioned to contribute richly to further pilots and development in both Europe and globally.
Ireland works closely with partners in numerous fora, including the Passport 6 group and the UN’s ICAO subgroups to ensure digital passports are developed collaboratively and securely. Currently, the focus of these groups is on a type of digital passport that is linked with the holder’s physical passport, which would make immigration and other processes faster. Work is also ongoing to create a fully digital passport that is secure enough for use without a physical passport being present, but this is anticipated further in the future.