Fantastic plastic: Ireland unveils selfie-friendly, credit card-style passports for EU travel
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}This undated photo issued on Monday Jan. 26, 2015, by Ireland's Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade shows the design of the front of the new Irish Passport Card. The credit card-style passports make their debut in July 2015 and, according to Foreign Minister Charlie Flanagan, can be used to travel throughout the 28-nation European Union as well as Iceland, Norway and Liechtenstein. (AP Photo/Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade/PA) UNITED KINGDOM OUT NO SALES NO ARCHIVE (The Associated Press)
Ireland is launching a new plastic passport for travel in Europe — and Irish citizens can provide their own selfies as the ID photo.
The credit card-style passports make their debut in July and, according to Foreign Minister Charlie Flanagan, can be used to travel throughout the 28-nation European Union as well as Iceland, Norway and Liechtenstein.
The cards are similar to the passport cards that U.S. residents have used since 2008 to travel to Canada, Mexico and the Caribbean, but those IDs work only for land and sea links, not air travel.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Applying by smartphone app, Irish citizens will be able to submit their own mug shot taken by the same phone. Security features include turning that photo into an embedded holographic image.
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Online:
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Government announcement: http://bit.ly/1CrDAuW