European Commission takes Belgium to court over biometrics

The European Commission is taking Belgium to court for failing to issue biometric passports with fingerprints, reports Planet Biometrics. More than three years after the deadline was set for issuing biometric passports with fingerprints, Belgium has not complied with this requirement. As a result, the Commission has now referred the country to the Court of Justice of the EU, requesting Belgium to speed up the delivery of biometric passports. Secure travel documents are one of the building blocks of the Schengen area – the common European area of free and secure movement. All member states are required to issue compliant passports to guarantee the same level of protection against fraudulent use throughout the EU. Member states had until August 28, 2006 to ensure that all passports issued contain a chip with a photo of the holder and until June 28, 2009 to ensure that this chip also carries the holder’s fingerprints. Among the EU member states that must comply with this legislation, Belgium is the only one that does not currently issue biometric passports with fingerprints to all citizens. While some steps have been made, full implementation is not likely to happen before next autumn. The commission has decided to proceed with the infringement procedure and to refer Belgium to court for having failed to take all the necessary measures to comply with EU law.