The Ministry of Interior notified the public of the one day procedure for issuing and delivering electronic passports to citizens. The procedure is carried out after the Naturalization Directorates receive the required documents from clients.
The Naturalization Residency and Ports Directorate in Abu Dhabi announced the issuance of 63,685 electronic passports in less than four months since the project’s launch on December 4, 2011.
Major General Nasser Al Awadhi Al Menhali, Assistant Undersecretary of Ministry of Interior for Naturalization, Residence and Ports Affairs, questioned the complaints of some of the clients who have claimed encountering some obstacles due to the delay in receiving their electronic passports by the Naturalization and Residence Directorates; they said the delivery took too long.
Major General Al Menhali assured that the Naturalization Directorates seek to employ all possible capabilities and redouble their efforts to provide the best quality of services, ensuring accuracy and speed in performance. He pointed out that the staff works during official and weekly holidays in the case of urgent transactions, and the time is limited to the morning period only.
He said: “The total number of the electronic passports issued and delivered to citizens amounted to 63,685 passports since the beginning of the project, last December through 33 Residency Directorates and until now. The passports include expired ones (renewal), newborn passports, new passports issued for the first time, and private and diplomatic passports.”
He reiterated the commitment of the Naturalization Residency and Ports Directorates to execute the instructions of Lt. General His Highness Sheikh Saif bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Interior, and his assurance to finish the clients’ transaction, especially the urgent ones or cases when it is required to finish the transaction immediately.
He pointed out there were some minor obstacles at the start of issuing electronic passports to citizens, which is considered to be very normal. These previous obstacles are now resolved; currently issuing and delivering passports is a task that takes 24 hours upon receiving the full required documents.
He specified papers to be delivered to the Naturalization Directorate; they are the original copy of the passport to be renewed, ID copy, family book and personal photo (6x4) with white background.
He added that after delivery of the full required documents by the Nationalization Directorate; it is transferred automatically to the Naturalization General Directorate and encoded on the computer. The General Directorate works on issuing the electronic passports in accordance with specified regulations, then resends it to regional directorates in the country through messengers assigned only for this task; within 24-hours the directorates deliver these passports to the citizens.
He encouraged citizens to go to the regional directorates and service centers in the emirate in which they live, when renewing their passports as they can receive it from the center itself with no need to go Abu Dhabi center. This action was designed to facilitate procedures the citizen has to go through.
He added: “The Ministry of Interior represented by Naturalization Residency and Ports Affairs Directorate contracts with one of the postal service companies to transfer electronic passports to the regional residency directorates around the country. Typing centers in the directorates capable of typing applications for 2,000 passports per day are employed all day long. The directorates are very keen to provide requirements for the citizens through facilitating procedures and speeding u