To realise a target of issuing chip-based citizen identification (ID) cards to over 411,300 eligible citizens in Da Nang by 1 July, police forces on duty at dozens of mobile points and district-based one-stop shops have been speeding up the handling of procedures for the mass issuance of such cards.

Each police officer is assigned very clearly tasks, from information checking, fingerprinting, portrait photography.

As of April 11, Da Nang police received 953,784 dossiers for the granting of chip-based ID cards out of the total 749,733 eligible citizens in the city, reaching 38.3%.

Since March 15, when the city started its ID card issuance campaign, the progress of dossier collection has been accelerated.

Police officers and men are working seven days a week with three shifts per day to process the massive amount of paperwork and application for the chip-based ID cards. In particular, many mobile groups usually work almost 23 - 24 hours daily (from 6:00am to 5:00am/6:00am the next morning).

Colonel Phan Van Dung, Deputy Director of the Da Nang Police Department, asked the district-level police to maintain the current capacity of handling more than 350 dossiers/ machine / day, and increase the figure to over 400.

Chip-based ID cards only differ from previous versions in the addition of an electronic chip, while other information, including the ID number, will remain unchanged. The smart card, which is designed to be encrypted, will store facial recognition features, fingerprints, and anthropometry.

The chips can store 20 personal data fields, and have a high security level so they cannot be falsified easily.

Once the mandatory portrait photography is completed, the applicants have their fingerprint samples taken.

Taking pictures and taking fingerprint samples normally take only from 2-3 minutes. However, taking fingerprint samples of senior citizens requires a longer time as theirs are blurred. After completing the procedures, police officers give printed information sheets for people to sign for certification.

Reporting by LE HUNG – Translating by A.T