Ammon News - AMMAN - Citizens’ national identification cards will soon be replaced with new ones that meet international standards and significantly reduce chances of forgery, the government said on Wednesday.

“I was informed today that Minister of Interior Nayef Qadi has approved a request by the Civil Status and Passports Department (CSPD) to replace citizens’ IDs with new forge-proof ones,” Minister of State for Media Affairs and Communications Nabil Sharif said at a press conference yesterday.

The minister added that the measure comes as part of the department’s drive to modernise IDs in light of recent developments in counterfeit prevention technology.

CSPD Director General Marwan Qteishat told The Jordan Times yesterday that the current IDs have been in use for more than 13 years and have become outmoded.

“The decision is part of our constant pursuit to stay up-to-date. And it’s about time to have more accurate and forge-proof IDs,” he noted.

“We have taken measures to renew other documents issued by the department such as birth certificates; two years ago, we started changing citizens’ passports and just three months ago, began to issue a new copy of the family book,” Qteishat added.

He noted that the department is currently studying different options on how to redesign the IDs, adding that a tender will be floated soon in order to go ahead with the process, which he said will most probably be carried out during the second half of the current year.

Sharif said he had no information on who would cover the expense of the ID replacement, but according to Qteishat, the law stipulates that citizens must pay for new ID cards.

(Jordan Times/ By Hani Hazaimeh)