A bill specifying e-residency passed its first reading in the Riigikogu
The Riigikogu concluded the first reading of a Bill and heard the replies to seven interpellations.
The Bill on Amendments to the Identity Documents Act and Amendments to Other Associated Acts (905 SE), initiated by the Government, passed the first reading. It will transfer the e-Residency programme to a cardless and remotely operating electronic identification scheme. The purpose of the amendments is to reduce bureaucracy, simplify the application for e-residency, and increase the economic impact of the e-residency programme.
Under the bill, starting in March 2027, the identities of e-residents will be verified and checked remotely using biometric data. For this, applicants’ biometric data and travel document information will be compared with data held in national databases. Starting in March 2028, there will be a transition to a cardless electronic identification tool, meaning that instead of the current digital ID, e-residents will have the right to use a digital identity solution without a physical card.
The right to use the electronic identification tool will be granted by the Police and Border Guard Board, and the technical solution will be organized by the Estonian Business and Innovation Agency.
Seven interpellations were replied
Minister of Defence Hanno Pevkur replied to the interpellation concerning the risk of corruption related to the movement of top managers in the defence sector into the private sector (No. 1000), submitted by members of the Riigikogu.
Minister of Finance Jürgen Ligi replied to the interpellations concerning public finance policy (No. 991), the secret sale of oil shale reserves to a private company (No. 1008), and political interference in economic research (No. 964).
Minister of Social Affairs Karmen Joller replied to the interpellations concerning the availability of the special care service (No. 954), the crisis in special care and the responsibility of the Minister of Social Affairs (No. 996), and the dangers of social media for children, and the Government’s plans (No. 1001).
Following the plenary session, a meeting was held to form a support group for the advertising tax on digital platforms, convened by Andre Hanimägi.
Helmen Kütt took the floor during the open microphone session.
The sitting ended at 22.51 p.m.
Verbatim record of the sitting (in Estonian)
Video recording will be available to watch later on the Riigikogu YouTube channel.
Riigikogu Press Service
Gunnar Paal
+372 631 6351, +372 5190 2837
[email protected]
Questions: [email protected]
