US ePassport roll out set for August

24 April 2006

The USA is expected to start rolling out ePassports to its citizens from August this year. According to Frank Moss, deputy assistant secretary of state for passport services, the electronic passports are already in pilot production.

Moss said the program took longer to implement than planned, primarily because the passport was completely re-designed and the adjudication process strengthened. A number of additional security features were also added to the electronic passport over the last year, including an anti-skimming material woven into the covers that reportedly restricts the possibility of reading the contactless smart chip in the passport when the cover is closed. There is also a printed data key inside the cover that must be scanned to unlock the ability to read the passport information, a process known as basic access control.

Moss claims that the United States is the world’s biggest issuer of passports, exceeding second-placed UK and third placed Germany combined. In 2006, Moss expects to issue 13 million passports, a figure which should rise to 17 million in 2008.

The US Department of State already began issuing diplomatic ePassports at the end of last year, while ePassport roll out for government officials has just started.