Egypt

Posted Thursday, September 1, 2016 - 00:40
Egyptian ID card
Egyptian ID card (with a dash in place of the religion)
Date Issued: 
2000
Issuing Agency: 
Ministry of Interior
Voluntary or Mandatory: 
Mandatory
Information on the Card: 
ID Number
Photo
Name
Sex
Birth Date
Address
Date of Issue
Years Valid
Other Information on the Card: 

Religion, Marital Status, Parents' Names, Signature

Card Purpose: 

Identification; proof of citizenship; domestic travel (crossing police checkpoints); banking; obtaining employment; medical care; applying for benefits; voting

Costs to User: 

85 EGP; ID cards are valid for seven years from the date of issue.

History: 

The first machine-readable ID card was introduced in 1996; the current version was first issued in 2000.

Corporate Involvement: 

Morpho

Additional Information: 

Religious affiliation is included on national identity cards; however, applicants may only be listed as Muslim, Christian, or Jewish. As citizens not belonging to any of those three religious affiliations were functionally disenfranchised, this stipulation was the source of a protracted controversy. Members of the Bahá'í faith were disproportionately affected, although atheists and adherent to other religious traditions were also disenfranchised. 

Following a protracted legal process, this controversy has apparently been resolved as of August 2009. Members of the Bahá'í faith and other citizens without a religious affiliation recognized by the government may now have a dash on their identity cards in place of their religion. Islam, Christianity, and Judaism remain the only religions that may be listed.