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ICAO MRTD REPORT
VOLUME 9, NUMBER 2, 2014
Editorial
MRTD ProgrammeAviation Security
and Facilitation Policy Section
Editor-in-Chief: Mauricio Siciliano
Tel: +1 (514) 954-8219 ext. 7068
E-mail: msiciliano@icao.int
Coordinator: Erik Slavenas
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E-mail: eslavenas@icao.int
Coordinator: Nathalie Teatin
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E-mail: nteatin@icao.int
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E-mail: GTomney@icao.int
Contributor: Omer Faruk Arinc
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E-mail: OArinc@icao.int
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KDH Communications
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E-mail: khoribe@videotron.ca
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Submissions
The MRTD Report encourages submissions from interested
individuals, organizations and States wishing to share
updates, perspectives or analysis related to global civil
aviation. For further information on submission deadlines
and planned issue topics for future editions of the
MRTD Report, please contact Mauricio Siciliano,
Editor-in-Chief, at: msiciliano@icao.int.
Opinions expressed in signed articles or in advertisements
appearing in the ICAO MRTD Report represent the authors
or advertisers opinion and do not necessarily reect
the views of ICAO. The mention of specic companies or
products in articles or advertisements does not imply that
they are endorsed or recommended by ICAO in preference
to others of a similar nature which are not mentioned
or advertised.
The publishers extend their thanks to the companies,
organizations and photographers who graciously supplied
photographs for this issue.
Published by
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The objective of the ICAO MRTD Report is to provide a
comprehensive account of new developments, trends,
innovations and applications in the eld of MRTDs to
the ICAO Member States and the international
aeronautical and security communities.
Copyright 2014
International Civil Aviation Organization
Printed by ICAO
Contents
3
4
8
Message from the Editor-in-Chief
Mauricio Siciliano outlines traveller ID management topics covered in the
Summer edition, including issues to consider before implementing ePassports,
Sweden and Canada as active ICAO PKD members, Estonia-Finlands
innovative data sharing initiative and capacity-building activities in the
Americas and Central America.
ePassport: Do It the Right Way!
Barry J. Kefauver describes the eorts undertaken in researching, designing,
developing and deploying todays generations of travel documents and the
work now underway on the next generation of travel documents.
Sweden Develops One of World's Most Secure ePassports
Birgita Lindblom and Stefan Danielsson describe the evolution of the Swedish
ePassport and how connecting to the ICAO PKD has made it even more secure.
Maximizing Canada's ePassport
Justin Ikura describes Canadas experience with the ICAO PKD and its plans
to ensure ePassport is both widely accepted and trusted.
Central America: Enchancing Traveller Identification Management
and Border Controls
Review of gap assessments held in Costa Rica and Honduras.
16 MRTD and Border Control News
Turkish Foreign Ministry's Electronic Visa Application System
The Electronic Visa Application System (EVAS) issued approximately one
million e-Visas in its rst year of operation, explains Yasin Temizkan. Currently,
citizens of 98 countries can obtain an e-Visa over the Internet within minutes.
ICAO and OAS/CICTE Project in Americas Successfully Implemented
Review of capacity-building project in travel document security and
identication management in Chile, Peru, Paraguay and the Unites States.
Making Identification Management More Secure: Estonia-Finland Data
Sharing Initiative
Helar Lasik explains that when Estonia and Finland signed a cooperation
memorandum to give Finnish authorities access to the Estonian X-Road source
code, the world's rst international agreement digitally signed by ID cards
took cooperation in information and communication technology between the
two countries to a new level.
XXXXX
Organization of American States (OAS) - Inter-American Committee on Terrorism (CICTE)
Ms. A. Moores Australia
Ms. H. Richardson Canada
Ms. M. Cabello Chile
Mr. M. Vacek Czech Republic
Ms. P. Moutaan France
Mr. O. Gtz Germany
Mr. R. Swaminathan India
Mr. J. Nugent Ireland
Mr. Y. Ando Japan
Ms. G.M.Keijzer-Bald Netherlands
Mr. D. Philp New Zealand
Mr. J. Wariya Nigeria
Mr. W. Xiaobo People's Republic of China
Vacant Portugal
Vacant Russian Federation
Mr. Lars Bjhle Sweden
Mr. R. Vanek Switzerland
Mr. A. Brown United Kingdom
Mr. M. Holly United States
XXXXX
ICAO MRTD REPORT ISSUE 2 2014 3
MESSAGE FROM THE EDITOR-IN-CHIEF
This issue continues to reect the diversity of topics and
challenges in holistic traveller identication management.
The ICAO Traveller Identication Programme (ICAO TRIP) Strategy,
adopted by the ICAO Assembly in 2013, has been gaining further
momentum. The adoption of the Strategy has provided a framework
for achieving the maximum facilitation and security benets in the
future by bringing together all the elements of traveller identication
management. Now the main focus is on operationalizing the ICAO
TRIP Strategy and developing it into an action plan where all
stakeholders, in a coordinated manner, have a role to play in day-to-
day implementation work.
In line with promoting advocacy and technical dialogue with Member
States, the recent MRTD Regional Seminar in Uzbekistan, organized
in partnership with the OSCE, addressed ICAO MRTD Standards and
specications, identication management best practices and related
border security issues. With a strong regional focus, it looked into
capacity-building challenges and explored new and more eective
ways of providing future technical assistance in Central Asia. As
usual, Seminar materials are available for reference on the MRTD
website.
This issue looks into a broad range of areas initiated by the ICAO TRIP
Strategy that explore challenges and responses in regions and
Member States. The implementation of ePassportand geting it
rightremains a central theme on the global traveller identication
management agenda. Current specications for issuing ICAO-
compliant ePassports provide a solid foundation for assuring the
most secure and robust travel document ever issued. With about 500
million ePassports in circulation, over 120 States claim they are
currently issuing ePassports. And these numbers continue to rise.
Given the background, it is of crucial importance ePassport issuance
projects achieve their full security and facilitation benets, including
ensuring accurate ePassport readings at borders and the proper use
of the ICAO Public Key Directory (PKD). In this magazine, Barry
Kefauver shares a helpful framework of policy issues and points to
consider before embarking upon an ambitiousand ofen costly
ePassport implementation project. The experiences of Canada and
Sweden illustrate well that the PKD is a crucial component in the
overall ePassport infrastructure required to ensure optimal security
and facilitation benets.
WELCOME TO
MRTD REPORTS
SUMMER ISSUE!
This issue also shares some important lessons learned by ICAO
Member States on separate holistic identication management
priorities. The innovative Estonia-Finland data sharing initiative,
intended to make identication management more eective and
secure, is a good example of how new technologies, trust and solid
partnerships can be eectively leveraged to enhance inter-agency
and cross-border cooperation. The Turkish Foreign Ministrys article
on its new Electronic Visa System additionally provides lessons on
how both border security and facilitation can be enhanced by applying
new thinking and new technologies to old challenges.
Finally, capacity-building and assistance to States remains an important
component of the ICAO TRIP Strategy and this issue shares some
updates about recent activities in the Americas. The Canada-funded
ICAO-OAS/CICTE project in the Americas has been successfully
implemented and provides food for thought for further capacity-
building initiatives in the region. Enhancing traveller identication
management and border controls in Central America is another area
where the ICAO TRIP programme has been active and oers some
insights from recent assessment missions in Costa Rica and Honduras.
The next MRTD/ICAO TRIP Regional Seminar, in Spain (June 2014), is
just round the corner. An important new feature of this Seminar is
interoperability tests for the Supplemental Access Control (PACE/
SAC) digital protocol that will be mandatory for all new European
travel documents afer 31 December 2014. At the Seminar, States and
industry partners will have an opportunity to test the interoperability
of the PACE/SAC in their passports and share and discuss their
experiences.
Lastly, the 10th MRTD/ICAO TRIP Symposium will take place in
Montreal on 7-9 October 2014. This years Symposium will focus on
the need for robust identication management infrastructure by
exploring key concepts and components such as Evidence of
Identication, civil registries, inter-agency cooperation and data
sharing and integrity of the passport issuance process. In light of
recent events, the Symposium will also highlight the importance of
properly managing stolen and lost passports and other interoperable
applications that enhance border controls for combating and
preventing terrorism and trans-border crime.
Further information about the Symposium and online registration are
available on the ICAO MRTD website.
There was a time, not really that long ago, when those of us in the travel document
community lusted to have a means to link the bearer of a passport with the
document itself. That is, to have condence that the passport presented for
inspection is, in fact, presented by its legitimate owner. There have been enormous
strides made over the past decade in researching, designing, developing and
deploying todays generations of travel documents. Building on the fundamental
specications of ICAO Document 9303, the most visible results of these eorts
have been the incorporation of RF chips and biometrics in passports and other
identity documents.
This article by Barry J. Kefauver, ISO and NTWG expert, describes these eorts,
provides an understanding of how we have goten where we are and oers some
insight into the work now underway on the next generation of travel documents.
The fundamental message is to convey the benets of ePassport implementation
as well as the requirements that must be fullled in order to insure that the e is
carried out in ways that will USE the capabilities of the technologies. This message
is of value to those who are about to embark on new ePassport programmes as well
as those who are moving into second and even third generation applications.
IMPLEMENTATION
ePASSPORT:
DO IT THE RIGHT WAY!
4 ICAO MRTD REPORT ISSUE 2 2014
ABOUT BARRY J. KEFAUVER
He is Principal of Fall Hill
Associates, LLC. With 30 years of
US Government experience, his
last position was Deputy Assistant
Secretary of State for Passport
Services, US Department of State.
He has chaired many international
fora, including the ICAO New
Technologies Work Group and
the International Standards
Organization.
IMPLEMENTATION
4 ICAO MRTD REPORT ISSUE 2 2014
CURRENT STATUS WORLDWIDE
At the time this article was writen, there were more than
100 countries issuing chip-based passports and more than
500 millionyes, over a half billionePassports in circulation.
For all intents and purposes, the ICAO April 2010 requirement that
all passports be machine readable has been met with international
compliance. Work continues to rene and enhance the document
issuance programmes in both new start-up applications as well as
work in some countries that are looking toward second and third
generation ePassport initiatives. However, while the work in
border inspection is slowly moving forward, the numbers of
countries able to take advantage of the electronic tools
ePassports provide lags far behind the mass in circulation.
Currently, the deadline of 24 November 2015 is of concern in
that all passports in circulation at that time must be machine
readable. Generally, the bulk of the world will not be adversely
aected, but there may well be some disruption to, for example,
visa issuance for a portion of the travelling public. ICAO is
working to smooth this transition as much as possible.
THRESHOLD QUESTIONS
Many countries have launched successful ePassport
deployments. Conversely, some issuers have encountered
numerous problems that in far too many instances have resulted
in costly and embarrassing failure. In assessing the reasons why
some fail and others dont, several distinguishing qualities
emerge. These distinctions fall into the general category of
proper planning and careful thinking long before system
specications are developed or a tender is drafed.
The essential and fundamental questions that must be asked to
guide these decision-making processes include the following:

Do I want an ePassport system?

Do I need an ePassport system?

Am I prepared to USE an ePassport system?

Is the integrity of my current process consistent with
and complementary to the technological advances of
an ePassport programme?
The remainder of this article examines these questions and
provides a framework for applying the answers to a specic
passport environment. These questions are yours to answer, not
the author's. The answers to these questions are for your use
only. Candour and honesty are requisites for asking and
answering and the results will only be useful if done accordingly.
DO I WANT AN ePASSPORT SYSTEM?
Think through this question very carefully. At rst blush,
the answer appears to be a no-brainer: of course, I want one.
That is the purpose of this self-questioning: to make sure this
correct answer is based on the right reasons. Use the additional
questions below to make your response a bit more objective
for your issuance programme.

Have you done a comprehensive risk identication and
management analysis of your present system?

Are you condent that your vulnerabilities have been
identied and corrected to take advantage of the ePassport?
Remember that every issuing authority embodies
vulnerabilities. Be brutally honest and your results
will be all the beter for it.

Why is an ePassport useful to your country? Be sure to read
and be atentive to all of the questions that address what
must be carried out in order to use an ePassport programme.
DO I NEED AN ePASSPORT SYSTEM?
There is no question that the international travel document
community is convinced that the world needs ePassports and
the document/traveller benets they provide. Nevertheless, this
conviction is tempered with an acknowledgement that not all
countries are in the same position to do ePassport programmes
the right way. That is another purpose of this article: to make
sure you determine how and when you are ready to take
advantage of the tools inherent in ePassports.

What will the e do for you that a traditional Machine Readable
Passport (MRP) will not? Again, make sure you answer this
question with the requirements to use the ePassport clearly
in mind.

Are you prepared to take advantage of the extensive
economies of scale (centralization) ofen accompanying
ePassport implementation? Be careful what you wish for.
Yes, there are most denitely economies and benets of
centralization, but these must be evaluated in terms of
criteria such as customer service that may need to be
subjected to tradeos.

Have you considered the impact on overseas issuance?

Are your border management procedures and processes
equipped to deal with inspecting ePassports? In concert with
the next section of questions, it is important for you to know
that proper inspection must accompany ePassport issuance.
Otherwise, as many experts have observed, the ePassport is
merely an expensive toy.
IMPLEMENTATION
ICAO MRTD REPORT ISSUE 2 2014 5
The value of an ePassport
is measured by the
trust and confidence
those who must
inspect it can place in it.
AM I PREPARED TO USE AN ePASSPORT SYSTEM?
This question demands a completely honest and realistic
answer. One widely publicized hacker unknowingly did us a
favour when he said his techniques would never work when
attempted in a properly managed inspection system.

Are your inspection processes ready to use/made to use
the cryptographic keys in the ePassport? Will you be able
to carry out machine-assisted algorithmic comparisons of
chip stored biometrics?

Are you going to join the ICAO Public Key Directory (PKD)
prior to ePassport implementation? Have you taken
appropriate budgeting precautions to insure that your
ePassport budget includes the PKD as a line item?

Have you prepared your travelling public for the changes that
biometric capture and use will bring about? The
considerations inherent in this question include factors such
as privacy. While sensitivities to these kinds of factors and
concerns will vary from country to country, the impact on
your citizens is substantial and for some countries has
proven to be a near fatal omission.
OVERALL SYSTEM INTEGRITY: IS YOURS ENOUGH?
It is important to recognize (and accept) that much of your
present system(s) will not be acceptable to merit the respect
of an ePassport programme. Pursuing a fully ICAO-compliant
passport programme will require modification or total
replacement of some or all present approaches.

Is the integrity of your current issuance and handling
process consistent with and complementary to the
technological advances of an ePassport programme?

Are issuance Evidence of Identity procedures and
safeguards as strong as the document you issue seeks
trust and confidence in the identity of the bearer?

Have you effected changes to insure respect for personal
privacy and accuracy of biometric and other data?

Have your human resources issues been
thoroughly addressed?

Do you comply with both the letter as well as the
spirit of Doc 9303?

Have you examined overseas application acceptance
(not necessarily overseas issuance) considering inherent
differences of culture, infrastructure and external
pressures in overseas missions?

Will emergency travel documents be a fraudster loophole?
MEASURES OF INTEGRITY
The value of an ePassport is measured by the trust and
confidence those who must inspect it can place in it. The
documents physical composition is one important aspect
of inspiring this confidence. As well, the criteria applied in
determining entitlement are very important considerations.
There should be a level of comfort that the bearer and the
document are both legitimate. This chain of trust has many
links that must all support the collective foundation. The
sum of these parts defines the integrity of your ePassport.
The following are a few variables for you to make certain are
as good as they can be in your system:

Human systems are your greatest strength and your
greatest vulnerability. You must adopt a near to zero
tolerance of weakness.

Work atmosphere and environment must be conducive to
insure that staff share in positive and effective results-
oriented values.

Evidence of Identification is the foundation for trust of your
passport. Make sure this foundation is not built of sand.

Spoiled document handling and blank document controls
are easily identifiable and quantifiable indices of care and
attention to detail.

In-house programme evaluation is a must on a continuing
and regular basis. The ICAO Guide for Assessing Security
of Handling and Issuance of Travel Documents provides
you with a useful road map so that you can carry these
assessments out.

Penalties for passport-related violations in your countrys
legal/judicial system as well as the administrative penalties
within your own organization must be of sufficient
magnitude commensurate with the impact of mischief
and malevolence of identity and related fraud.
CONCLUSIONS
The use of ePassports, when planned, deployed and inspected
properly has proven to be of great value in improving both
security as well as facilitation of the worlds travelling public.
The issues raised in this article and the questions you are
charged with answering should lead to even more questions,
especially as they relate to your own programme environment.
When that questioning and introspection occur, this article has
accomplished its intent.
IMPLEMENTATION
6 ICAO MRTD REPORT ISSUE 2 2014
determine how and when you are ready to take
advantage of the tools inherent in ePassports.
IMPLEMENTATION
6 ICAO MRTD REPORT ISSUE 2 2014
XXX
8 ICAO MRTD REPORT ISSUE 2 2014 8 ICAO MRTD REPORT ISSUE 2 2014
Birgitta Lindblom and Stefan Danielsson of the Swedish National Police
Board have followed the evolution of the Swedish ePassport from ordinary
travel document to electronic super ePassport. This new ePassport has
resulted in safer border controls and more effective work processes. Plus
after connecting to the ICAO Public Key Directory (PKD), the Swedish
ePassport is more secure than ever before.
Its harder to manipulate the information that is stored on the ePassports
chip, explains Birgitta Lindblom, responsible for the PKD system at the
Swedish National Police Board.
We had an ePassport that was controlled to a certain degree electronically
but since the new system was put in place, we have access to the Public Key
Infrastructure (PKI) certificates of other countries that enable us to have
better and more secure controls, says Stefan Danielsson, Project Manager
for the ICAO PKD project at the National Police Board.
When a border guard places the ePassport onto a reader, he/she will not
only be able to view, for example, the photo, name and date of birth, but also
determine whether the chip in the ePassport has been tampered with or not.
The next step will be to check and match fingerprints, says Lindblom.
Then we can connect the holder to the ePassport, which also hopefully will
prevent people selling or lending their ePassports to other people.
SWEDEN DEVELOPS
ONE OF WORLDS MOST
SECURE ePASSPORTS
ICAO PKD
ABOUT
BIRGITTA LINDBLOM
She is Deputy Head of
Department, Swedish
National Police Board,
with responsibilities
for strategic planning
and development. She
started her career
with the government
in Sweden. She was
also a director at an
American medical
device company with
responsibility for both
Europe and Asia.
ABOUT
STEFAN DANIELSSON
He is Project Manager
for the ICAO PKD
project at the Swedish
National Police
Board. Since launch
of the PKD solution in
December 2013, he is
Manager responsible
for electronic parts
of travel documents
and related systems.
He also worked as a
Project Manager on
international projects
in the areas of border
control, ePassports
and PKI.
access to the PKI
certificates of other
countriesenable us
to have better and
more secure controls.
XXX
8 ICAO MRTD REPORT ISSUE 2 2014 8 ICAO MRTD REPORT ISSUE 2 2014
ICAO PKD
ICAO PKD
Sweden held the Presidency of
the EU Council of Ministers in 2009
and, during that time, was the driving
force behind the proposal that every
Member State should join the
ICAO PKD.
EU Member States could apply
for economic support from the
EUs External Border Fund, says
Lindblom. The monetary support we
got made it possible for us to carry
out the project and was also a strong
argument when it came to internal
budget and strategy prioritizations.
Sweden as country number
30 became a PKD member in
December 2011. We connected to
the PKD as country 24, explains
Danielsson. Today there are
45 Member States in the PKD but
we hope more and more countries
will join and start exchanging
certificates. The ICAO PKD gives
us continuity in the exchange of
these certificates and we can
rely on always having the latest
certificates and revocation lists.
ICAO PKD
10 ICAO MRTD REPORT ISSUE 2 2014
From lef to right: Christiane DerMarkar, ICAO PKD Ocer, Stefan Danielsson, Project Manager, ICAO PKD
Project, Swedish National Police Board, Birgita Lindblom, Deputy Head of Department, Swedish National
Police Board, and Steve Berti, Chief of ICAO Security and Facilitation Policy (SFP) Section.
ICAO PKD
10 ICAO MRTD REPORT ISSUE 2 2014
Previously the exchange of the certificates was handled
bilaterally between countries. This meant that we almost
never had the latest certificates as the exchange relied
on the people responsible for the certificates showing up
at meetings with the certificates. We also had problems
obtaining certificates from countries outside Europe.
Today, the Swedish exchange of certificates is handled
automatically with other countries via the ICAO PKD,
says Danielsson.
For Lindblom and Danielsson, the ICAO PKD project has
been a huge challenge. The system is both complex and
technically advanced and demanded highly skilled developers
and engineers. They struggled with prioritizing resources,
budget cuts and questions about the meaning of it all.
Why should Sweden join the PKD? Is it really necessary
to spend the money when we already have one of the
most secure ePassports in the world?
To Lindblom and Danielsson, the answer is YES! The
passport is a document that has to follow an evolution.
We need to secure it so that we can stop people using it to
pass through the border illegally. The more countries that
connect to the PKD, the better border control will be.
ICAO PKD
...Swedish
exchange of
certificates
is handled
automatically...
via the ICAO PKD.
12 ICAO MRTD REPORT ISSUE 2 2014
In July 2013, Canada became one of the 100+ ICAO ePassport-issuing Member
States. Justin Ikura, Deputy Director, Department of Citizenship and Immigration,
describes Canadas experience with the ICAO Public Key Directory (PKD), the
impact on relations with border management and Canadas plans moving forward
to beter integrate ePassport into the Canadian travel continuum and ensure it
is both widely accepted and trusted, a central priority.
The ongoing and rapid adoption of the contactless integrated circuit chip passport
(ePassport) presents opportunities to enhance the security of border management,
while facilitating travel for document holders. Maintaining this balance is core to the
mandate of the ICAO Traveller Identication Programme (ICAO TRIP) Strategy and
remains at the forefront of the programmes technology and capacity-building
agendas. While the integration of key digital features signicantly enhances
applications of ePassport in travel, countries must invest in and/or recongure their
border management with the technologies and processes required to capitalize on
the advantages aorded by the ePassport.
ICAO PUBLIC KEY DIRECTORY
The ICAO PKD is a key tool that may be applied in the process of border control
to ensure that countries are fully beneting from the issuance of an ePassport.
The ICAO PKD provides member countries with a central location to share digital
information that can be used by other members to verify that ePassports presented
at border control are valid, issued by the country indicated and unaltered.
MAXIMIZING
CANADAS ePASSPORT
ICAO PKD
ABOUT JUSTIN IKURA
He is Deputy Director of the
Department of Citizenship
and Immigration, Canadas
International Programs Division,
Passport Program Policy Unit.
In this capacity, he and his
team oversee Canadas
contributions to ICAO Working
Groups and initiatives.
UV design of every visa page includes multiple rainbow paterns, micro-printing, exploding fonts,
guilloche paterns and registered features.
12 ICAO MRTD REPORT ISSUE 2 2014
ICAO PKD
XXX
14 ICAO MRTD REPORT ISSUE 2 2014
Membership in the ICAO
PKD continues to grow
and currently stands at
45 members from around the
globe. The growing interest
and membership in the
ICAO PKD is contributing
to advancing the safety
of international travel and
furthering the core objectives
of the ICAO TRIP Strategy.
Canada is a long-standing
participant in the ICAO PKD,
which it joined in 2007. In
addition to membership,
Canada is also a founding
member of the PKD Board of
Directors, established in 2007
to promote the ICAO PKD as a
complementary solution to
ePassport deployment and to oversee its administration. In
May 2013, Canada was re-elected to the PKD board by existing
board members for another three-year term, re-affirming its
valued role. While Canada has been both a participant and
a PKD board member for seven years, its experience with
ePassport issuance was limited to the issuance of diplomatic
and special ePassports. On 1 July 2013, Canada became one of
the more than 100 ePassport-issuing ICAO Member States by
issuing 104 ePassports. Recognizing the value and rigour that
ICAO PKD participation provides Canada will continue to
leverage the ICAO PKD as an efficient distribution mechanism
for the digital information accompanying issued ePassports.

Ongoing efforts to remain active in the ICAO PKD are linked to
a number of national priorities. First, Canada recognizes the
value of proactively sharing document information with its
international partners, who may use it to facilitate the travel of
passengers. Ensuring that Canadian travellers receive the full
benefit of carrying an ePassport throughout their travels is
critical as the new document comes with an added cost and
longer validity.
Second, strengthening security of travel is a central objective
for Canada and a number of countries that receive its travellers.
The ICAO PKD provides Canada and other members with an
effective and efficient mechanism to significantly improve
the security of border management, while, at the same time,
facilitating travel.
Finally, the ICAO PKD provides a cost-effective means to
leverage more features of the ePassport, providing a return on
investments made in moving from a machine readable passport
to an ePassport. Combined, these factors have heavily tipped
the scales in favour of continued support for the ICAO PKD.
BUILDING SUPPORT WITH BORDER MANAGEMENT
Ensuring the ePassport is designed in such a way that it can be
validated against information in the ICAO PKD, while actively
sharing digital certicates and Certicate Revocation Lists
is, however, only one part of the equation. Border control
organizations must also be commited to using information stored
in the ICAO PKD to ensure the State as a whole can benet.
Conguring border systems to perform this validation can,
however, require additional investments. Accordingly, travel
document issuing authorities, particularly those involved in
the ICAO PKD, should be working to both collect and share
information and best practices about the benets and savings
associated with automated border controls that can be realized
when the electronic features of the ePassport are fully utilized.
CANADAS EXPERIENCE
Now that Canada has nationally deployed its ePassport, it will
continue to more aggressively explore ways to beter leverage
the investments made in its ePassport, which could include more
fully integrating the ICAO PKD into the travel continuum. Both
Canadas passport issuing and border management organizations
are working together to assess the benets and costs to fully
ICAO PKD
14 ICAO MRTD REPORT ISSUE 2 2014
Security laminate contains a
variable size text spiral, animation
eects and an embossed eect in
shape of map of Canada to protect
bearers photograph.
Pages 2 and 3 of Canadian passport.
XXX
14 ICAO MRTD REPORT ISSUE 2 2014
ICAO PKD
14 ICAO MRTD REPORT ISSUE 2 2014
deploying the ICAO PKD
domestically across the 132 air
and land ports of entry. Canadas
border control agency, the
Canada Border Services Agency
(CBSA), has expressed a keen
interest in using the ICAO PKD as
an underpinning feature of its
border control processes that
include a mix of automated and
traditional passenger processing
techniques. The CBSA will
continue to automate processes
in the Canadian traveller
continuum and leverage recent
Government of Canada investments in biometrics in order to
enhance the facilitation of travellers while maintaining security.
Recognizing that many other existing and potential ICAO PKD
members could benet from a similar review, Canada has
suggested working with interested PKD board members to
develop a border engagement strategy that could be used to
identify all the barriers and solutions to ICAO PKD deployment.
Canada, along with Ireland and New Zealand, will embark on a
fact-nding mission to determine what contributing factors
prevent the use of the ICAO PKD and how they may be overcome.
The outcomes should be used to resolve any issues ICAO PKD
members may be grappling with to secure buy-in from key
implicated domestic stakeholders as well as encourage broader
participation in the ICAO PKD. In addition to this work, Canada,
in its capacity as a PKD board members, has also suggested the
current recommended practice in Annex 9 to the Convention on
International Civil Aviation, related to the ICAO PKD, be amended to
encourage more active participation in the ICAO PKD. This proposal
is still subject to the ICAO approval process for Standards and
Recommended Practices, in this case, starting with the ICAO
Facilitation Panel. Canada has managed to secure support from key
international partners on the proposal and sees this initiative as an
important way to further promote the ICAO PKD.
As more and more Canadians begin to acquire ePassports, the
rationale for ICAO PKD deployment will inevitably strengthen. As it
does, Canadas travel document issuing authority, the Department
of Citizenship and Immigration Canada, will continue to work in
close cooperation with the CBSA to identify ways to benet
from the ePassport, including strengthening the capabilities
of automated border clearance systems across the country.
ICAO PKD
XXX
16 ICAO MRTD REPORT ISSUE 2 2014
Central America is located in a strategic area within
the Americas that serves as a bridge between Northern
and Southern States. These states share many features and
challenges such as the current increase in cross-border
migration. Today, this region lacks secure and robust
identification management, a major vulnerability that tends to
be exploited by terrorists and criminals. Gaps in identification
management, lack of ICAO-compliant passports, use of various
identification documents as travel documents non-compliant
with ICAO Standards and Recommended Practices and
irregularities in the issuance processes allow these terrorists
and criminals to exploit weaknesses by obtaining authentic
and valid passports to cross borders for illicit purposes.
Consequently, the linkages between national and regional
security and border controls have driven governments to
factor international organised crime and terrorism threats
into their agenda and strengthen their migration and identity
management capabilities. Indeed, the need for enhanced
comprehensive border and identity capacity-building
strategies has emerged as a priority for both individual
governments and regional bodies.
In 2013, ICAO and the Central American Integration System
(Sistema de la Integracin Centroamericana, SICA), through
its Central American Border Control Programme (SEFRO),
undertook joint efforts to assist the Central American
Member States in combating terrorism and trans-border
crime and preventing the use of false identities and fraudulent
travel documents. SICAs objective is to achieve integration
among the Central American States through common political
and strategic initiatives that will help the region achieve
peace, democracy, freedom, security and development.
The lack of a framework that encompasses all identification
management phases has become a strong challenge in the
process of attaining an effective, efficient and lasting border
security strategy.
The focus of this ICAO and SEFRO/SICA initiative, funded
by the Government of Canada, is to help Central American
States strengthen the capacity to improve their identification
management, travel document security and border control
systems. In particular, the joint effort aims to assist this region
in overcoming their challenges while meeting their regional
and international obligations. This includes the United Nations
Security Council Resolutions 1373 and 1624, Standards
contained in ICAO Annex 9 Facilitation, Document 9303
Machine Readable Travel Documents and other best
international practices and standards on identification
management, travel document issuance and border controls.
This initiative will provide Central American States with
assistance through gap assessment missions to Belize, Costa
Rica, Honduras, Nicaragua and Panama. These five States did
not benefit from technical visits carried out under the ICAO
and OAS/CICTE three-year project. The assessment missions
are based on the ICAO Traveller Identification Programme
(ICAO TRIP) Strategy, which provides a systematic approach
to capacity-building in all identification management phases:
the issuance process, travel document security and border
CENTRAL AMERICA: ENHANCING
TRAVELLER IDENTIFICATION
MANAGEMENT AND BORDER CONTROLS
Gap Assessments in Costa Rica and Honduras
OUTREACH AND ASSISTANCE TO STATES
16 ICAO MRTD REPORT ISSUE 2 2014
Honduras: Meeting at Security National Council (Consejo Nacional de Defensa
y Seguridad).
Both assessments relied
on fact-finding from
diverse sources.
XXX
16 ICAO MRTD REPORT ISSUE 2 2014
OUTREACH AND ASSISTANCE TO STATES
16 ICAO MRTD REPORT ISSUE 2 2014
controls. To date, two gap assessment missions have been
carried out in Costa Rica (10-13 December 2013) and in Honduras
(25-28 March 2014).
In both missions, the assessment team consisted of a lead
expert, one official from ICAO and one representative from
SEFRO/SICA. The scope of the assessments focused on the
beneficiary States passport issuance and personalization,
including the integrity of the issuance process as well as
Evidence of Identification required, such as breeder
documents like birth and death certificates and identification
cards. The assessments also looked closely at all the
documents used as travel documents within the region,
such as each States identification card.
Both assessments relied on fact-finding from diverse sources,
including interviews with key policy and technical level officials
and visits to sites at passport, immigration and civil registry
offices. Both assessments were conducted in the spirit of
collaboration with openness and support from all government
agencies in Costa Rica and Honduras. All the information
collected focused on compliance with ICAO Document 9303,
the ICAO Guide for Assessing Security of Handling and
Issuance of Travel Documents and good international
practices in passport issuance and identification management.
The gap assessment missions helped to identify current and
potential weaknesses in the administrative and operational
capacity of both States as they relate to passport issuance
and identification management, including the existence of
inter-agency cooperation and data sharing. The mission made
recommendations to all government agencies visited and, upon
their implementation, will play an integral part in both States
ongoing improvements in their border control and security
programmes, as well as future capacity-building initiatives.
This Canada-funded project is an example of the joint efforts
linking the needs of States, ICAO expertise, SEFRO/SICA
initiatives and donor community resources.
OUTREACH AND ASSISTANCE TO STATES
Costa Rica: Passport Oce, Directorate General of Immigration, Citizenship and
Naturalization (Direccin General de Migracin y Extranjera).
Honduras: Passport Oce, Ministry of Foreign Aairs (Ocina de Pasaportes del
Ministerio de Relaciones Exteriores).

MRTD AND BORDER

CONTROL NEWS
USA
Orlando International Airport was the rst US
airport to roll out biometric kiosks to accelerate the
arrival experience for passengers from visa waiver
countries. The kiosks read passports and capture
ngerprints and facial images.
Germany
By the end of 2014, the Federal Ministry of Interior
will implement ABC gates at Frankfurt, Munich,
Dsseldorf and Hamburg airports, for a total of
90 e-gates. Other German airports will also be
ted with e-gate technology.
Madagascar
To optimize controls at its airports,
in December 2013 Madagascar
introducted new ePassports.
eReaders will be implemented
in 2014.
UAE
Travellers entering and exiting the UAE who use the
smart gate do not need to undergo prior registration
or stop at passport control. UAE will have smart
gates at all airports by 2015.
United Kingdom
The new generation of ePassport gates ocially opened
at London Gatwick Airport, replacing rst generation gates.
In the past year, 10 million passengers have used them across
the UK with numbers totalling 1 million monthly.
Gabon
Gabon is now issuing ePassports to its citizens. The new
model of ePassport came into eect on 23 January.
India
Residents with handwriten or non-MRPs and 20-year duration passports with
validity date beyond November 2015 will have to reapply for their passports to avoid
any inconvenience in obtaining visas or immigration clearance. Beginning next year,
ePassports will be embedded with biometric information to ensure greater security
and transparency.
Malta
The long-awaited new electronic ID cards have
started to be issued. With the government taking
a gradual approach, 320,000 ID card holders will
have their cards renewed in the near future.
Nepal
The government will phase out handwriten passports by
November 2015, replacing them with MRPs. Nepali missions
in Australia, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and France recently urged all
Nepalis holding ordinary passports to replace them with MRPs.
Israel
Israel began a pilot programme fully
operational by 2015 for a biometric
database of ID cards and passports. In the
rst six months, 200,000 biometric
passports and identity cards were issued.

Armenia
Eective 1 January, Armenian citizens were issued IDs with biometric data and
biometric passports, replacing current passports. Citizens with regular passports
can use them until the expiration date.
Georgia
Free ID cards were distributed to internally displaced persons and to teachers. A total of
75,000 free ID cards were issued.
Estonia and Finland
Estonia and Finland concluded
an intergovernmental
agreement, the basis for
cooperation in e-government
between the two countries.
The Memorandum was the
worlds rst digitally signed
international agreement. Once
pilot projects go public in 2014,
the countries will oer
bilateral cross-border
e-services.
Philippines
Only ePassports will be accepted
by immigration authorities
beginning October 2015. The
Bureau of Immigration installed
100 biometric capturing machines
in its premiere airports and
is expecting delivery of
299 passport readers.
Malaysia
The Ministry of Home Aairs will
issue biometric ID cards to 2 million
foreign workers in Malaysia,
making it easier for local
authorities to track down
illegal immigrants.
Uzbekistan
Uzbekistans citizens will be able to travel abroad with biometric passports
as of 1 July.
Tajikistan
As of 1 March, the Foreign and Interior Ministries issued ID cards, replacing internal
paper passports for citizens. The Interior Ministry is in charge of collecting data
and ngerprints, while the Foreign Ministry manufactures the cards.
China
The Ministry of Public Security
certied silicon sensor readers for
Chinas Resident Identity Card. The
new China Resident Identity Card
Law requires citizens to record
their ngerprints when applying for,
renewing or replacing resident ID cards.
Cambodia
The Ministry of Interior will provide
electronic ID cards to 5.5 million
citizens in the near future.
Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka plans to issue biometric
ID cards to its citizens in the near
future. The cards will include
biometric data and security
features to prevent counterfeiting,
forging and tampering.
SECURITY & FACILITATION
MRTD Community Website
The MRTD Partnership Community
Website can help you reach all of ICAOs
Member States. Major Industry
experts in the MRTD, Border Control,
Security and Facilitation eld use our
Website to deliver their corporate
message to key players in the MRTD
Community worldwide.
Increase your visibility to
ICAOs Member States
For more information or to obtain a copy
of our media package and marketing
tools, visit us at : www.icao.int/mrtdc or
get in touch with us:
Caroline Casabon
Tel.: +1 514-954-8219 extension 6466
Email: ccasabon@icao.int
MRTD2014
MRTD Community Website
MRTD2014
The Turkish Foreign Ministry developed the Electronic Visa Application System
(EVAS) as an alternative to visas issued at its missions abroad and ports of
entry to Turkey, explains Yasin Temizkan, Acting Department Head, Directorate
for Information Technologies, Ministry of Foreign Affairs. In its first year,
approximately 1.3 million e-Visas were issued through EVAS. Currently, citizens
of 99 countries can obtain an e-Visa over the Internet within minutes. Users
have been very satisfied with the application process, their feedback is used to
constantly improve the system and the Foreign Ministry is willing to share its
experiences with interested countries.
According to the United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO), Turkey
was the worlds sixth most popular tourism destination in 2013over 35 million
foreigners visited Turkey that year. Nearly one third of the tourists visiting
Turkey are required to obtain visas. There are currently three means of obtaining
a Turkish visa: Turkish Embassies and Consulate Generals, visa counters at ports
of entry and EVAS. While the first option remains available to all travellers, the
other two are reserved for citizens of certain countries.
Prior to introducing EVAS, Turkeys visa practices proved problematic for five
major reasons. First, every year over 10 million people, including the elderly,
pregnant women, children and disabled citizens, had to spend up to two hours
standing in line for a visa after a long exhausting trip to Turkey. Second, some
people, who are normally eligible for visas on arrival, were not granted visas at
the borders for various reasons and they had to travel back to their previous
departure point.
TURKISH FOREIGN
MINISTRYS ELECTRONIC
VISA APPLICATION SYSTEM
ABOUT YASIN TEMIZKAN
He is a career diplomat, currently
serving as Acting Head of
Department, at the Directorate
for Information Technologies of
the Turkish Ministry of Foreign
Aairs. His previous positions
have included Deputy Chief of
Mission, Turkish Embassy in
Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia,
Deputy Chief of Mission, Turkish
Consulate General in Jeddah,
Saudi Arabia, and Atach,
Directorate for Middle East
Aairs, Ministry of Foreign Aairs.
TRAVEL DOCUMENTS
ICAO MRTD REPORT ISSUE 2 2014 21
XXX
22 ICAO MRTD REPORT ISSUE 2 2014
Third, people who were required (or preferred) to obtain visas
prior to travel had to spend considerable time and energy on
visa applications at Turkish missions. Fourth, some Turkish
missions were so consumed by visa applications they did
not have enough time for other important services. Fifth,
foreigners who were ineligible for visas on arrival and who
did not have a Turkish mission in their vicinity were unable
to travel to Turkey.
In response to these challenges, the Foreign Ministry
developed EVAS using the latest information technology
solutions and introduced it on 17 April 2013.

HOW DOES EVAS WORK?
EVAS covers all travellers who are eligible for visas on arrival.
In addition, citizens of certain other countries are also entitled
to apply for e-Visas. At the moment, EVAS serves citizens of
99 countries.
The e-Visa process takes an average of three minutes.
Applicants must log onto www.evisa.gov.tr, enter information
regarding identity and travel documents, confirm they meet
e-Visa requirements, make an online payment (unless exempt
from the visa fee) and download their e-Visas. No pictures or
documents are required to be uploaded to the system.
Applications are automatically processed and cleared through
a database maintained by the Ministry of Interior before the
e-Visa is issued. Visa fees are collected by a contracted bank
and transferred to the Treasury.
e-Visa information is instantly shared with all ports of entry.
As passport control officers at the borders can verify e-Visas in
their system, travellers are not required to carry their e-Visas.
However for offline verification, they are advised to have either
a softcopy (on tablet, PC, Smartphone, etc.) of their e-Visas or a
hardcopy in case of any failure in the system.
Applicants are notified their e-Visas are invalid if they do not
meet specified e-Visa criteria. Companies offering air, land
and sea travel services to Turkey are obliged to check their
passengers e-Visa validity and prevent invalid e-Visa holders
from travelling to Turkey on their vessels. Checks to verify
e-Visas can be conducted manually over the e-Visa website
(https://www.evisa.gov.tr/en/status/) by entering an e-Visa
reference number or a software system used by a company
connected to the e-Visa system via a web service. For the
second alternative, a protocol should be signed with the Foreign
Ministry. Up to now two airline companies have concluded such
protocols. As with other visas, e-Visas do not guarantee that
the holder will be granted entry at the port of entry.

KEY EVAS DEVELOPMENT AND IMPLEMENTATION STEPS

Analysis: While the Foreign Ministry took the lead role in
designing the basic tenets of the application, the Ministrys
EVAS team also consulted related government bodies and
private sector representatives.
TRAVEL DOCUMENTS
22 ICAO MRTD REPORT ISSUE 2 2014
EVAS
APPLICATIONS BY NATIONALITIES
(TOP 10)
Iraq
United Kingdom
USA
Norway
Netherlands
China
Australia
Saudi Arabia
Belgium
India
Total e-Visas issued: 955.798
293.777
107.318
76.685
54.296
36.205
28.104
27.511
25.790
22.757
21.907
EVAS
APPLICATIONS BY AGE GROUPS
Ages over 70
3.52%
Ages 56-70
15.41%
Ages 46-55
14.80%
Ages 36-45
17.73%
Ages 0-12
9.08%
Ages 26-35
22.16%
Ages 18-25
11.84%
Ages 13-18
5.45%
XXX
22 ICAO MRTD REPORT ISSUE 2 2014
TRAVEL DOCUMENTS
22 ICAO MRTD REPORT ISSUE 2 2014

Design and Coding: The EVAS team prioritized creating
and coding a user-friendly design for the application.

User Support: The EVAS team formed an online Support
Desk to reply to written requests from users. In addition,
the Foreign Ministrys existing Call Centre was empowered
to answer EVAS-related inquiries.

Launch: Initially, the application was made available to the
public in Turkish and English.

Development: EVAS has been modified and improved in line
with users feedback.
French, Spanish, Arabic, Chinese, Dutch, German, Polish
and Norwegian languages have been added to the system;
More countries are covered;
Payment methods have been diversified;
Certain companies offering air, land and sea travel services
are authorized to apply for e-Visas on behalf of their
customers over their own systemsthis requires a
protocol and any interested company is welcome;
Group and family applications were made possible for tour
operators and families; and
e-Visa kiosks are located and free Wi-Fi areas were created
at major Turkish airports for foreigners arriving in Turkey
without visas.
EVAS is an in-house application of the Foreign Ministry.
From analysis to user support, all aspects of the system are
developed, maintained and improved by Foreign Ministry
personnel comprised of administrative personnel, analysts,
designers, programmers, testers and user assistants.
Approximately 1.3 million foreigners received e-Visas within
the first year of EVAS and the system has proved to be
effective in addressing difficulties encountered in other
areas of the visa application.
TRAVEL DOCUMENTS
e-Visa information
is instantly shared
with all ports
of entry.
LESSONS LEARNED DURING IMPLEMENTATION OF EVAS
While EVAS is run by the Foreign Ministry, the Ministry of
Finance oversees the process implemented by the authorized
banks for a smooth flow of e-Visa fees. The Ministry of Interior
is responsible for e-Visa validity checks at ports of entry and
the Ministry of Culture and Tourism monitors the impact of
EVAS in tourism. Efficient coordination among all the parties
involved is critical for the success of the system. The Foreign
Ministry ensures this coordination by monitoring the process
closely, anticipating obstacles and addressing them in a timely
manner and with the close cooperation of relevant parties.
Representatives of Turkeys tourism sector, such as tour
operators and hotel owners, have continuously lobbied for
easier visa procedures. The Foreign Ministry proactively
reached out to engage these groups and address concerns
regarding EVAS.
EVAS serves hundreds of thousands of people from all
over the world. The Foreign Ministry believes their inquiries
should be answered and the problems they face should be
solved immediately. To this end, the e-Visa Support Desk
and the Foreign Ministrys Call Centre respond to inquiries
from users 24/7. Within the first year, approximately
55,000 written requests and 20,000 phone inquiries were
received and answered. It is encouraging that most users
send positive feedback.
Three comments, out of thousands from www.evisa.gov.tr/en/
comments/, are cited below to provide a better idea of users
experiences with EVAS.

This is not only the easiest way I have ever been issued a
visa by any country, it is also the easiest online purchase
of anything I have ever done. Fantastic job. S.C., USA

A very good design presenting clear, timely and precise
information. A straightforward process with easy to follow
steps. A very pleasant rst impression of your country,
which I very much look forward to visiting. Thank you.
M. P., United Kingdom

I have a professional background in IT and communications
and quite honestly this was one of the simplest, quickest and
most user friendly experiences I ve ever had with either
e-government or online payment processing. Under three
minutes to apply/pay for and receive my visa. Amazing!
R. B., Canada
It was not only users who praised EVAS. In December 2013,
the system was recognized with Turkeys most prestigious
e-government award: the eTR Award, Public e-Services
category, which was presented to the Foreign Ministry by the
Speaker of the Turkish Grand National Assembly at a ceremony
held at the Assembly.
EVAS FOR OTHER COUNTRIES
Air transport and tourism are intrinsically linked to each other.
According to UNWTO, in 2012, over one billion international
tourists travelled the world, half of whom arrived at their
destination by air. This number is expected to reach 1.8 billion
by 2030. Likewise, based on ICAOs latest forecasts, aircraft
departures are expected to grow from 30 million today to
60 million by 2030. These figures yet again underscore the
importance of visa facilitation for sustainable development
of the air transport and tourism sectors. To this end, Turkeys
EVAS provides a model application for other ICAO members
and offers a number of advantages from easy passenger flow
management at airports to security.
EVAS is a multilingual application and can easily be transferred
to other countries. The Foreign Ministry, in principle, is ready to
share its e-Visa experience with any interested country.
TRAVEL DOCUMENTS
24 ICAO MRTD REPORT ISSUE 2 2014
The e-Visa process takes an
average of three minutes.
TRAVEL DOCUMENTS
24 ICAO MRTD REPORT ISSUE 2 2014
XXX
26 ICAO MRTD REPORT ISSUE 2 2014
Since December 2011, ICAO has been working with the
Inter-American Committee against Terrorism of the
Organization of American States (OAS/CICTE) on a project
on capacity-building in travel document security and
identification management in the Americas. This project was
funded by the Anti-Crime Capacity Building Program (ACCBP)
of the Department of Foreign Affairs, Trade and Development
of Canada. The three-year project culminated in the
Hemispheric Workshop held in Miami, Florida, on
26-28 February 2014.
The objective of this collaborative initiative between both
organizations was to assist participating States achieve
compliance with the Standards and Recommended Practices
contained in ICAO Annex 9 Facilitation, Document 9303
Machine Readable Travel Documents and best international
practices on travel document issuing processes. The project
particularly focused on consolidating the States capabilities
to prevent terrorism and trans-border crime through enhanced
cross-border cooperation and capacity-building to achieve
effective travel document issuing and identification
management systems through six sub-regional workshops
and eight gap assessment missions (see Table 1).
Responding to the global driving forces and needs of Member
States, the 38
th
Session of the ICAO Assembly last fall
endorsed the ICAO Traveller Identification Programme
(ICAO TRIP) Strategy that provides an holistic, coherent
and coordinated approach to the identification management
processes leading up to issuance of travel documents,
crucial aspects that ensures the legitimacy of secure
travel documents. During the sub-regional workshops
and gap assessment missions, all related topics were
analysed and understood from an identification management
holistic perspective.
Project activities highlighted how border controls, travel
document security and identification management were
central to combating terrorism and trans-border crime. Today,
the use of false identities and fraudulent travel documents
remains a major vulnerability often exploited by trans-border
criminal and terrorist networks. In the Americas, advocacy of
MRTD Standards and technical assistance to States is a vital
part of the ICAO TRIP capacity-building efforts and this
project was an excellent example of this type of initiative.
The initial activities of this project, published in the 2012 MRTD
Report Summer edition (Vol.7, No.2), highlighted the outcomes of
the sub-regional workshops in Mexico (2011) and Panama (2012)
and the technical gap assessment mission in the Dominican
Republic (2012). The 2013 MRTD Report Fall edition (Vol.8, No.3)
outlined the results of the sub-regional workshop for Colombias
Andean States (2013) and the two gap assessment missions in
Trinidad and Tobago and Saint Lucia.
This article presents the last four events of this project: the
Sub-regional Workshop for Chiles South Cone States (2013), two
gap assessment missions in Peru (2013) and Paraguay (2013), South
America, and the Hemispheric Workshop in the United States (2014).
ICAO AND OAS/CICTE
PROJECT IN AMERICAS
SUCCESSFULLY IMPLEMENTED
OUTREACH AND ASSISTANCE TO STATES
26 ICAO MRTD REPORT ISSUE 2 2014
TABLE 1: ICAO AND OAS/CICTE
PROJECT IN AMERICAS
SIX WORKSHOPS
EIGHT GAP
ASSESSMENT
MISSIONS
Mexico and Dominican Republic
Mexico, December 2011
Dominican Republic
March 2012
Central America
Panama, February 2012
Guatemala
May 2012
Northern / Western Caribbean
Antigua and Barbuda, September 2012
El Salvador
June 2012
Southern / Eastern Caribbean
Trinidad and Tobago, December 2012
Antigua and Barbuda
November 2012
The Andes
Colombia, April 2013
Saint Lucia
April 2013
Southern Cone
Chile, September 2013
Trinidad and Tobago
February 2013
Peru
August/September 2013
Paraguay
December 2013
XXX
26 ICAO MRTD REPORT ISSUE 2 2014
OUTREACH AND ASSISTANCE TO STATES
26 ICAO MRTD REPORT ISSUE 2 2014
FOCUSING ON SOUTH CONE STATES
The last and sixth Sub-Regional Workshop, which was held
11-13 September in Santiago, Chile, was hosted by the Ministry of
Foreign Aairs and Investigations Police of Chile. The workshop
atracted 43 government ocials from four ICAO Member
States of the South Cone Region and one from the Andes Region
(Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Paraguay, Uruguay and Venezuela),
representing the national agencies responsible for passport
issuance, civil registry and immigration services.
The Workshop emphasized the holistic approach of the issuance
and handling procedures of travel document security and
identication management. It also looked at the experiences
of the participating States, as well as explored ways in which
countries can self-assess their passport issuance processes by
using the ICAO Guide for Assessing Security Standards for
Handling and Issuance of Travel Documents.
The Workshop was led by international technical experts from
various elds of identication and border management and travel
document security. The sessions provided topical and case study
presentations on aspects of travel document issuance processes
and security, assessment of security and handling/issuance
of travel documents, Evidence of Identication and border
management and control. The sessions were designed with a
participative format that encouraged discussions on the various
topics between participants and experts. Consequently, all
Workshop sessions were interactive and characterized by
continuous information sharing.
The ve Workshop sessions focussed on:

Issuance of secure machine readable travel documents (MRTDs)
and electronic MRTDs (eMRTDs), according to ICAO Standards
and Specications;

Specications of implementing ICAO-compliant ePassports;

ICAOs new holistic traveller identication management
approach (ICAO TRIP Strategy) and its relation to the entire
supply chain process of issuing travel documents;

Evidence of Identication and improving and modernizing
national civil registry systems and introducing secure birth
certicates and/or other breeder documents;

Addressing vulnerabilities in travel document
issuance processes;

Enhancing the technical knowledge and security awareness of
immigration and passport sta in order to empower them to
perform their daily duties in an informed and professional manner;

Strengthen cross-border cooperation between South Cone and
Andean States and consolidate their eorts in identication
management and border security by outlining the need to work
towards managing and controlling their joint borders;
OUTREACH AND ASSISTANCE TO STATES
28 ICAO MRTD REPORT ISSUE 2 2014
XXX

Eective and reliable practices of verifying travel documents
at borders;

Guidance, capacity and tools from discussing a case study using
the ICAO Guide for Assessing Security of Handling and Issuance
of Travel Documents;

Discussing the practicalities, benets and diculties of
self-assessing their States issuance processes using the
ICAO Guide for Assessing Security of Handling and Issuance
of Travel Documents; and

Roundtable discussions concerning travel document security,
identication management, Evidence of Identication and
border control.
Workshop participants expressed a lot of satisfaction with the
discussions and outcomes, which included: a strong need to
increase the interoperability and collaboration among national,
regional and international agencies; continue improving
document security and identication management processes;
fundamentally promote inter-agency and cross-border
cooperation; and the elevated need for technical capacity-building
assistance. The outcomes obtained throughout the Workshop
were intended to help develop future capacity-building initiatives
for the States in this region.
GAP ASSESSMENTS IN SOUTH AMERICA
The last two gap assessment missions took place in Peru on
27-30 August 2013 and in Paraguay on 3-6 December 2013. In both
missions, the assessment team consisted of a lead expert and
ocials from ICAO and OAS/CICTE. The scope of each assessment
focused on the States passport issuance and personalization
processes including its integrity, as well as the legitimacy of the
Evidence of Identication used such as breeder documents chiey
for the registration of life events like birth and death records and
other documents used as travel documents in the region.
The methodology included visits to key targeted sites like
passport, immigration and civil registry oces, as well as the
study of background documents, legislation and other sources.
The information collected focused on compliance with ICAO
Document 9303 and good international practices in passport
issuance and identication management.
The objectives of the two gap assessment missions were:

Assess passport and issuance processes, taking into account
the States compliance with ICAO Standards, specications
and good international practices;

Examine national identication management as it relates to
the issue of travel documents and also breeder documents,
including birth and death certicates and national identication
cards; and

Identify any current or potential weaknesses in the
administrative and operational capacity as these aspects
relate to passport issuance and identication management
and make recommendations to government agencies for
consideration and action.
OUTREACH AND ASSISTANCE TO STATES
28 ICAO MRTD REPORT ISSUE 2 2014
Participants at Chiles Sub-regional Capacity-Building Workshop.
Peru: National Registry of Identication and Marital Status (Registro Nacional
de Identicacin y Estado Civil).
Participants at Paraguays gap assessment.
28 ICAO MRTD REPORT ISSUE 2 2014
XXX OUTREACH AND ASSISTANCE TO STATES
28 ICAO MRTD REPORT ISSUE 2 2014
Both gap assessments were open and transparent, which
added to the success and relevance of the missions. Overall,
the gap assessments provided a comprehensive view into the
administrative and operational capacity of government agencies
visited in Peru and Paraguay, including inter-agency cooperation,
with particular reference to all identication documents used
for travelling within the region. All the recommendations
focused on helping both States improve their border control
and security programmes.
CLOSING EVENT
The Hemispheric Workshop, ICAO and OAS/CICTE projects
last event, was held in Miami, Florida, on 26-28 February 2014.
The Workshop was atended by 67 government ocials from
agencies responsible for passport issuance and immigration
services from 32 ICAO Member States. Participating States
included Antigua and Barbuda, Argentina, Bahamas, Barbados,
Belize, Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Costa Rica, Chile, Dominica,
Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Grenada, Guatemala,
Guyana, Haiti, Honduras, Jamaica, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama,
Paraguay, Peru, St. Kits and Nevis, Saint Lucia, St. Vincent
and the Grenadines, Suriname, Trinidad and Tobago, Uruguay
and Venezuela.
The objectives of this nal Workshop were to:

Provide the ndings, lessons learned and conclusions of
the three-year project;

Present ICAOs new holistic traveller identication
management approach (ICAO TRIP Strategy) endorsed by the
Assemblys 38
th
Session in September 2013;

Inform participating States about the capacity-building
projects, training courses and programmes on travel document
security, identication and border control management that
are developed and implemented at both sub-regional and
regional levels in the Americas Region; and

Determine among participating States future steps that will
increase inter-agency and regional cooperation, as well as
information sharing on travel document security and
identication management.
Representatives from the international and regional
organizations and the Government of Canada delivered
presentations on their current initiatives, projects and
programmes implemented in the Americas Region. Colombia,
Costa Rica, Dominican Republic and Trinidad and Tobago also
made presentations on their experiences, lessons learned and
new initiatives developed afer participating in the activities of
this project. Each session provided presentations on the work
required to achieve integrated and eective identication
management systems. The last session provided States the
opportunity to discuss the challenges faced sub-regionally and
determine ways to overcome and mitigate these deciencies.
The main outcomes achieved during this Workshop included:

Raised awareness about the importance and current main
MRTD compliance challenges in meeting the 24 November 2015
deadline (Standard 3.10.1, Annex 9);

Provided participating States with guidance, best practices
and tools to assist them with improving their identication
management, passport issuance and border control processes
and systems (ICAO TRIP Strategy);

Discussed with participating States the ndings and
recommendations generated throughout the implementation
of the three-year project;

States shared their experiences and benets gained from
participating in the projects activities (sub-regional
workshops and/or gap assessments); and

Discussed future capacity-building initiatives and the
next steps that will help each sub-regionNorth America,
Central America, South America and the Caribbeanovercome
their challenges and diculties.
At the end of the Workshop, participants verbally expressed
their gratitude, satisfaction and fullment with this nal event,
as well as with the project as a whole. This valuable project was
possible thanks to funding provided by the Government of
Canada. All the outcomes generated throughout the project
served to identify, improve and develop future initiatives that
will help States strengthen cross-border cooperation and
improve the identication, travel and border security systems
of all participating States.
Participants at Floridas Hemispheric Workshop.
...all related topics were
analyzed and understood from
an identification management
holistic perspective.
OUTREACH AND ASSISTANCE TO STATES
30 ICAO MRTD REPORT ISSUE 2 2014
OUTREACH AND ASSISTANCE TO STATES
30 ICAO MRTD REPORT ISSUE 2 2014
MAKING IDENTIFICATION
MANAGEMENT MORE
SECURE: ESTONIA-FINLAND
DATA SHARING INITIATIVE
TECHNOLOGY
32 ICAO MRTD REPORT ISSUE 2 2014
ABOUT HELAR LAASIK
He is Chief Expert of the Estonian
Police and Border Guard Board,
Citizenship and Migration
Department, Personal Identity
and Documentation Bureau. His
responsibilities include technical
requirements for travel and
identity document blank design, IT
infrastructure, chip and document
personalization of ID cards and
passports. Since 2007, he is the
Estonian delegate to the European
Council Article 6 Committee and
its technical subgroups dealing
with design, security elements, chip
specifications and IT policies.
In December 2013, the Prime Ministers of Estonia and Finland signed a cooperation
memorandum to give Finnish authorities access to the Estonian X-Road source code
and services. Finland had decided to create its own e-services solution along with
a data exchange environment similar to Estonian X-Road, explains Helar Lasik,
Chief Expert, Estonian Police and Border Guard Board, Citizenship and Migration
Department, Personal Identity and Documentation Bureau. The X-Road backbone
data exchange layer allows secure web-based data exchange between the various
information systems of a state. This memorandum was the rst international
agreement in the world that was digitally signed by ID cards issued in dierent
countries by dierent authoritiestaking cooperation in information and
communication technology between Finland and Estonia to a new level.
Riku Jylhnkangas, Director of the Strategic Governance of the Finnish Public
Sector ICT, says, We are planning to thoroughly study the Estonian X-Road. This is
not just about the source code but also about understanding the organization and
agreements that create the frameworks for this technology. We are also hoping to
test cross-border services. The Finnish Information Society Strategy was adopted in
2012 and the development of the information society is the priority of all ministries.
The ICT cooperation between Estonia and Finland had been under discussion since
spring 2013.
TECHNOLOGY
32 ICAO MRTD REPORT ISSUE 2 2014
Jaan Priisalu, Director General of the Estonian Information Systems Authority
(RIA), says, We are hoping to reach the milestone of the rst functioning cross-
border e-services that would serve as an example for the whole of Europe. For
example, digital signatures or electronic tax operations that are valid in a cross-
border framework would save a lot of time and money for everyone.
Since the memorandum was signed, the rst tests of cross-border data exchange
using the X-Road solution between the two nations tax authorities have already
been conducted.
X-ROAD
Building an Estonian eGovernment started in the early 90s. The public sector
understood that modern technology could help them oer beter e-services
and numerous organizations started to develop their own information systems.
Quite soon it became evident that collecting the same data in dierent places was
expensive and the quality of the duplicated data was not of the same standard in
every place. Thus a project called the X-Road, the crossroad where systems can
meet each other, was created.
With the X-Road backbone data exchange layer allowing secure web-based data
exchange between the various information systems of the state, both citizens and
ocials can have 24/7 access to the state registers.
The X-Road system was introduced in Estonia in 2001 and is based on open source
sofware. Tight communication between components of the data exchange layer
makes oering complex services possible. Originally the system was used for
making queries to dierent databases. Now it is a tool to write to multiple
databases, transmit large data sets and perform searches across several
databases. Currently there are more than 800 organizations, public registers
and databases connected to the X-Road and this number is increasing.
In the case of our citizens, they are able to use the X-Road services via dierent portals,
which include making enquiries from state databases and controlling the information
related to their personal information. Our ocials can use the service in the information
systems of their own institutions, for instance, the Document Exchange Center.
This facilitates their work since it avoids the labour consuming processing of paper
documents, large-scale data entry and data verication. Communication with other
ocials, entrepreneurs and citizens is faster and more accurate.
Heres an example: e-Police equipped patrol cars require information about a driver
or vehicle from several databases simultaneously such as a drivers picture from the
Citizenship and Migration database, the statuses of the cars technical inspection
and driving rights from the Estonian Road Administration database and car
insurance data from the Estonian Trac Insurance Fund database. All those
requests are logged and unlawful data mining is prevented.
One of the key elements of
e-Estonia is its databases
are decentralized
XXX
34 ICAO MRTD REPORT ISSUE 2 2014
XXX
34 ICAO MRTD REPORT ISSUE 2 2014
One of the key elements of e-Estonia is its databases are
decentralized, which means:

There's no single owner or controller.

Every government agency or business can choose the product
that's right for them.

Services can be added one at a time, as they are ready.

Data doesnt need to be copied. It is created, processed and
available in the same place.
In the future, a solution similar to the X-Road will benet Finnish
citizens and enterprises as it denitely allows oering public
services faster and at less cost, explains Jylhnkangas. Giving
Finnish Police access to the Estonian Population Register
prevents the easy creation of double identities in Finland
based on inaccurate data.
If the Estonian-Finnish cooperation proves successful, citizens
will not have to repeatedly submit data that they have already
led in the other country. For instance, entrepreneurs will no
longer have to prove, in both states, the absence of tax arrears
and persons desiring to work ocially in Finland will no longer
have to submit a paper copy of the pension insurance certicate
every year.
Estonian Prime Minister Andrus Ansip says, Saving time also helps
to save money. In Estonia, we save time worth a total of 2% of the
annual gross domestic product by using digital signaturesthat's
equivalent to saving one week of working time per person".
REASON FOR SUCCESS
RIA along with Finland is implementing the X-Road solution as the
Palveluvyl project and it was decided to develop it together in
the future. The solution hasnt been competing hard with big global
IT companies. Success came with creation of an operative scalable
middle layer solution that had proven itself over the years, an
o-the-shelf product ready for implementation that didnt need
any mid- and large-scale development. Estonia has its own X-Road
centre and Finland has its own. In the near future, various X-Roads
will be able to communicate with each other. All other countries
are welcome.
BRITISH INITIATIVE
Both countries IT constitution and performance were under
discussion at a meeting between the UK governments Chief
Technology Ocer Liam Maxwell and RIA Director General Jaan
Priisalu on 8 October 2013. Britain is interested in Estonias X-Road
solution, the state portal eesti.ee and RIHA, the administration
system for the state information system, RIA reports. The British
TECHNOLOGY
intend to analyze the X-Road solution for implementation in
UK systems. For now, the rst pilot projects using the X-Road
have been successfully nished and new plans laid down.
FUTURE
In 2013, Cybernetica, in cooperation with RIA as the contracting
authority, started developing the next generation of the X-Road
together with the Competence Centre in Electronics-, Info- and
Communication Technologies. One of the main motivations behind
this eort was the need to also exchange data over the X-Road with
other countries.
The initial pilot projects with Finland commenced in 2014, starting
with data exchange over the borders between the tax boards and
social insurance agencies.
Cybernetica, with support from several other Estonian companies,
has collaborated since summer 2013 in an X-Road pilot project with
the Finnish company, Kuntien Tiera OY.The outcome of the project
will be to deploy the X-Road for Finnish municipalities and connect
several registers to it. This project will provide technological
insight for the Finnish authorities, together with understanding the
necessary legal agreements and the need for unied requirements.
It is hoped that the X-Road model will atract interest in the rest
of the Baltic Sea region and thereafer elsewhere in Europe. This
might, in turn, open up new business opportunities for IT companies
from both Estonia and Finland.
The X-Roads data exchange layer could also nd a place in other
countries across the continent. Today, there isnt much regulation or
rules in the way information is exchanged, but with the X-Road the
process would be much more consistent, systematic and a lot safer,
of course. During the next few years, its unlikely the system will be
deployed around Europe though. A lot of countries have dierent
architecture and a dierent understanding of privacy and safety.
The European Commission is looking for a unied vision and the
European Union is working on it.
TECHNOLOGY
36 ICAO MRTD REPORT ISSUE 2 2014
Figure 1: Estonian X-Road Structure. Courtesy of the Estonian Information Systems Authority.
PRINCIPLE SCHEMA OF ARCHITECTURE
Health
Insurance
Register
Vehicle
Register
Document
record
management
systems
Document
exchange
centre
Energy Telecom
Banks
Population
Register
Adapter server Adapter server
Security server Security server Security server Security server Security server Security server Security server Security server
Adapter server Adapter server Adapter server Adapter server Adapter server Adapter server
Security server Security server Security server Security server
Internet X-ROAD Technology and vendor neutral
HelpDesk
Central
monitoring
X-road
certication
centre
Central
server I
Central
server II
Public sector Private sector
MISP
Mini-infosystem
portal
Administrative
system of the
state information
system
riha.eesti.ee
Adapter server
Citizen
view
Enterpriser
view
Public servant
view
Governmental Portal
Your Estonia
www.eesti.ee
Thematic view of the state
X-GIS
Adapter server
e - ID
TECHNOLOGY
36 ICAO MRTD REPORT ISSUE 2 2014
CAPACITY & EFFICIENCY
Caroline Casabon, phone: +1 514-954-8219 ext 6466
fax: +1 514-954-6769, e-mail: ccasabon@icao.int
Keith Miller, phone: +1 514-954-8219 ext. 6293
fax: +1 514-954-6769E, e-mail: kmiller@icao.int
For more information you can visit http://www.icao.int/Meetings/Pages/upcoming.aspx or contact:
Tenth Symposium and
Exhibition on ICAO MRTD
Biometrics and Border Security
Montreal, Canada 7-9 October 2014
ICAO will hold the Tenth Symposium and Exhibition on Machine Readable Travel
Documents (MRTDs), Biometrics and Border Security. A select group of Industry
Partners will complement the Symposium, showcasing a broad range of products
and services related to MRTDs, biometric identication, travel document security
applications and border management systems.
MRTD2014
Tenth Symposium and Exhibition on
ICAO MRTD Biometrics and Border Security