The new Canadian electronic passport will be valid for 10 years but according to the Canadian government, Canadians are unaware of what the new passports will include and what they won’t include. Last week, the government provided some more information on the new e-passports to clear things up.
Passport Canada recently released the results of a survey, and in the report the organization said, “Generally, Canadians are not aware of the project by the government of Canada to adopt the new passport, nor do they know exactly what the passport consists of.”
The new passport will be similar to the current passport, only containing a photograph. Ideas like fingerprints, iris scans and other biometric data were suggested, but will not be a part of Canada’s new passport. The most significant improvement is that adult Canadians will have the choice between a five-year passport or a 10-year passport, and children will be able to obtain five-year passports. The e-passport also has a microchip that contains information on the passport holder’s identity.
Similar validity periods are included in passports for other countries like France, Australia, the United States and the United Kingdom. According to a spokesperson for Passport Canada, the passports are meant to be more convenient for Canadians.
Using fingerprints and iris scans would violate standards set by the International Civil Aviation Organization, but the Canadian Civil Liberties Union has stated that the microchip in the passport could leave Canadians at risk of identity theft as well as surveillance by unauthorized parties.
President & CEO
Michael Niren
Mr. Niren is CEO of VisaPlace LLC and the President and Managing Partner of VisaPlace Legal Canada, an immigration law firm based in Toronto, and VisaPlace Legal US a law firm registered in The District of Columbia, USA. Mr. Niren is a graduate of Osgoode Hall Law School in Toronto, a member of the Law Society of Upper Canada, the Canadian Bar Association’s Citizenship and Immigration Section, American Lawyers Association, and an Associate Member of the American Bar Association.
