SANTO DOMINGO.-Will the ID number change with the new document? What will the delivery be like for those deprived of liberty? What possibilities does the chip that will be embedded in the document present and what about security?
These and other questions were answered by the plenary session of the Central Electoral Board (JCE) in an extension of the socialization process that they have sustained in recent months regarding the new identity and electoral card.
From an institutional perspective, the new ID constitutes an investment and not an expense, because it introduces a more durable, more secure document with technological capabilities that will allow the State to save resources and modernize its identity platform.
The JCE allocated a year to purifying the civil registry, especially in processes linked to foreign citizens, to avoid documentary alterations before starting the renewal.
In total, 9.4 million new IDs will be issued in a process that will last until March 2027 for residents in the country, and until January 2028 in the case of the Dominican diaspora.
The transition is based on a contract awarded to the EMDOC consortium, after an international public tender launched in April of last year and concluded with the signature in October 2025.
According to the official schedule, distribution of the new plastic will begin in the final part of the first quarter of 2026. The most significant changes focus on safety. The current ID has 22 elements, while the new one will incorporate 100 authentication mechanisms. The transition from PVC to polycarbonate marks a technological breakthrough: this last material, composed of nine layers, makes any attempt at alteration difficult and extends the useful life of the document up to 25 years.
The information will no longer be printed, but laser engraved, which allows greater precision in micro details, in text, in ghost photography and in authentication marks.
The main photo will go to grayscale, a standard also used in countries like the United States, but the original color version will remain in the internal databases of the JCE and on the electoral roll.
One of the most important innovations is the incorporation of a cryptographic chip. In addition to the traditional QR, the chip will store the citizen’s information with encryption mechanisms that make cloning or modification impossible, even by authorized personnel.
Along with this, the ID will include a digital signature certificate that will facilitate electronic procedures and more efficient future interoperability between State institutions.
In exceptional situations, and depending on bilateral agreements, the document could even serve as a substitute for the passport for specific trips.
The digital version will be an extension of the physical one. To access it, the ID card must first exist in traditional format; From there, the citizen will be able to use a mobile application that will allow identity validation on public roads, in institutions and in administrative processes.
This digital version opens the door to services such as prescription validation, issuance of diplomas, labor controls, notarial procedures, etc.
Abinader will be the first card holder
Time. The official schedule establishes that the capture of data from JCE personnel will begin on January 8.
The first ID will be delivered to the President of the Republic, Luis Abinader, on January 26, and between February and March it will be the turn of congressmen, judges, public officials and communicators.
Citizenship in the general sense will begin its renewal on April 8, 2026, and the process will conclude on March 31, 2027 for those who reside in the national territory, although the identification card abroad will continue until January 2028.
The current ID will definitively expire on March 31, 2027.
The identity card for minors will be larimar blue, that of legal foreigners will be gunmetal, and the general one will include colors of the national flag.
