The Iranian identity card is the primary

identity document An identity document (abbreviated as ID) is a documentation, document proving a person's Identity (social science), identity. If the identity document is a plastic card it is called an ''identity card'' (abbreviated as ''IC'' or ''ID card''). ...

in Iran. Every citizen age of 15 and above, whether resident or not, needs to apply for such a card, which bears their unique national identity number,

given name A given name (also known as a forename or first name) is the part of a personal name quoted in that identifies a person, potentially with a middle name as well, and differentiates that person from the other members of a group (typically a f ...

surname In many societies, a surname, family name, or last name is the mostly hereditary portion of one's personal name that indicates one's family. It is typically combined with a given name to form the full name of a person, although several give ...

, birth date, and postal code. The current version of this card is called the national

smart card A smart card (SC), chip card, or integrated circuit card (ICC or IC card), is a card used to control access to a resource. It is typically a plastic credit card-sized card with an Embedded system, embedded integrated circuit (IC) chip. Many smart ...

() and is the successor of the national card (). This card is intended to reduce the need for the more valuable

Iranian identity booklet The Iranian identity booklet, also known as the (), is one of the identity documents issued in Iran. This identity document is in booklet format and issued to Iranian citizens at birth. The National Organization for Civil Registration of Iran ...

, which is issued at birth. The National Organization For Civil Registration began issuing national smart cards in 2015. At the time, the application was voluntary. As with other

s, the national card features a smart chip and an

RFID Radio-frequency identification (RFID) uses electromagnetic fields to automatically identify and track tags attached to objects. An RFID system consists of a tiny radio transponder called a tag, a radio receiver, and a transmitter. When tri ...

. The Iranian authorities initially advertised this card as a means of secure participation in

election An election is a formal group decision-making process whereby a population chooses an individual or multiple individuals to hold Public administration, public office. Elections have been the usual mechanism by which modern representative d ...

s that guarantees voting integrity. On the back of the card it says it is legally required to notify Civil Registration of address changes. In the near future, identity booklets will be replaced by these cards. It will also replace Iranian banks'

debit card A debit card, also known as a check card or bank card, is a payment card that can be used in place of cash to make purchases. The card usually consists of the bank's name, a card number, the cardholder's name, and an expiration date, on either ...

s in August 2023.

Other uses

In 2024 people sold their IDs to people who register to purchase imported vehicles.

Services blacklist

In 2024 the judiciary made it illegal for the government to disable convicts' identification number.

Photo print

The photo in ID is a black and white laserprinted image, and is often subject of criticism for being soulless and unlifelike. The camera person may also often be an unskilled government post office worker.

Smart national card program

The material required for development was unavailable. After the

United States withdrawal from the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action The United States announced its withdrawal from the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), also known as the "Iran nuclear deal" or the "Iran deal", on May 8, 2018. The JCPOA is an agreement on Iran's nuclear program reached in July 2015 ...

during the Trump presidency and US sanctions against Iran, the shortage halted the program halfway, causing the replacement national scheme to be a failure. Only 10 million cards were issued seven years later, and as of 2023 59 million persons out of the Iranian population of nearly 88 million have Iranian identity cards.

Steps to receive an ID

Iranian citizens preregister on national identity card website and receive a tracking code. They must then visit the departmental office and fill in a registration form. An

SMS Short Message Service, commonly abbreviated as SMS, is a text messaging service component of most telephone, Internet and mobile device systems. It uses standardized communication protocols that let mobile phones exchange short text messages, t ...

message is then sent from the government service department office, and the card is activated and received.

References

External links

Government of Iran

Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI) and also known as Persia, is a country in West Asia. It borders Iraq to the west, Turkey, Azerbaijan, and Armenia to the northwest, the Caspian Sea to the north, Turkmenistan to the nort ...

Authentication methods in Iran Identity documents of Iran {{Iran-stub