page_title: Identity document
section_title: Italy
hierarchical_section_title: Identity document / National policies / Europe / European Economic Area / Italy
caption_attribution_description: Italiano: Fac-simile del fronte della nuova Carta d'identità elettronica (CIE) introdotta a partire dal 2016
context_page_description: An identity document is any document that may be used to prove a person's identity. If issued in a small, standard credit card size form, it is usually called an identity card, or passport card. Some countries issue formal identity documents, as national identification cards which may be compulsory or non-compulsory, while others may require identity verification using regional identification or informal documents. When the identity document incorporates a person's photograph, it may be called photo ID.
  In the absence of a formal identity document, a driver's license may be accepted in many countries for identity verification. Some countries do not accept driver's licenses for identification, often because in those countries they do not expire as documents and can be old or easily forged. Most countries accept passports as a form of identification.
  Some countries require all people to have an identity document available at any time. Many countries require all foreigners to have a passport or occasionally a national identity card from their home country available at any time if they do not have a residence permit in the country.
context_section_description: Anyone who is legally resident in Italy, whether a citizen or not, is entitled to request an identity card at the local municipality. Also, any Italian citizen residing abroad in any of the European countries where there is the right of free movement, is entitled to request it at the local Italian embassy/consulate.
  An identity card issued to an Italian citizen is accepted in lieu of a passport in all Europe (except in Belarus, Russia and Ukraine) and to travel to Turkey, Georgia, Egypt and Tunisia.
  For an Italian citizen it is not compulsory to carry the card itself, as the authorities only have the right to ask for the identity of a person, not for a specific document. However, if public-security officers are not convinced of the claimed identity, such as may be the case for a verbally provided identity claim, they may keep the claimant in custody until his/her identity is ascertained; such an arrest is limited to the time necessary for identification and has no legal consequence.
  Instead, all foreigners in Italy are required by law to have an ID with them at all times. Citizens of EU member countries must be always ready to display an identity document that is legally government-issued in their country. Non-EU residents must have their passport with customs entrance stamp or a residence permit issued by Italian authorities; while all resident/immigrant aliens must have a residence permit (they are otherwise illegal and face deportation), foreigners from certain non-EU countries staying in Italy for a limited amount of time (typically for tourism) may be only required to have their passport with a proper customs stamp.
  The current Italian identity document is a contactless electronic card made of polycarbonate in the ID-1 format with many security features and containing the following items printed by laser engraving:
  on the front: photo, card number, municipality, name, surname, place and date of birth, sex, height, nationality, date of issue, date of expiry, signature, Card Access Number, (optional) the sentence "non valida per l'espatrio" only if the document is not valid abroad
  on the back: surname and name of parents or legal guardian (if the applicant is not an adult yet), Italian fiscal code, Italian birth code, residence address, (optional) additional information if the owner is residing abroad, Italian fiscal code in form of barcode, Machine Readable Zone
  Moreover, the embedded electronic microprocessor chip stores the holder's picture, name, surname, place and date of birth, residency and (only if aged 12 and more) two fingerprints.
  The card is issued by the Ministry of the Interior in collaboration with the IPZS in Rome and sent to the applicant within 6 business days.
  The validity is 10 years for adults, 5 years for minors aged 3–18, 3 years for children aged 0–3 and it is extended or shortened in order to expire always on birthday.
  However, the old classic Italian ID card is still valid and in the process of being replaced with the new eID card since 4 July 2016. The lack of a Machine Readable Zone, the odd size, the fact that is made of paper and so easy to forge, often cause delays at border controls and, furthermore, foreign countries outside the EU sometimes refuse to accept it as a valid document. These common criticisms were considered in the development of the new Italian electronic identity card, which is in the more common credit-card format and now has many of the latest security features available nowadays.
caption: Italian eID card since 2016 (front)
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