Cyprus will begin accepting applications for its new national electronic identification system (eID) from Monday, 27 January 2025, with the government subsidising the first 100,000 digital IDs.
The government will fully subsidise 30,000 eIDs on a first-come, first-served basis, whilst the next 70,000 applicants will pay a reduced fee of €15, against a standard cost of €50 for the three-year validity period.
Deputy Minister for Research, Innovation and Digital Policy, Nicodemos Damianou, said at a press conference that the eID marks a milestone for the country’s digital economy. The system has received European Commission approval at the highest security level under the eIDAS regulation, enabling cross-border electronic transactions within the European Union.
The scheme, known as IDMe.cy, represents the final phase of Cyprus’s “public upgrading” initiative, which includes the new government portal (gov.cy), the “Digital Citizen” mobile application – already used by 25,000 people – and an artificial intelligence-powered Digital Assistant.
Eligible applicants must be Cypriot citizens over 18 with a valid biometric ID card and a smartphone supporting biometric authentication. The licensed provider, JCC, will process applications through its trust portal, with applicants required to visit Citizen Service Centres in person within 30 days to complete the verification process.
The eID system will initially enable access to government services through CY Login and has been integrated with the Hippodamos system. Plans are underway to extend its use to other government departments, including the Companies Registrar and Intellectual Property Office and the Department of Road Transport.
Applications can be submitted through www.idme.gov.cy, where detailed information about the system, supported mechanisms, and usage procedures is available.
Damianou encouraged businesses to utilise the eID mechanism to digitalise customer relationships and expand operations whilst reducing administrative costs.
The initiative will also allow digital signing of 21 different Social Insurance Services applications:
- Employer registration application
- Self-employed registration application
- Self-employed income-based contributions payment application
- Self-employed non-employment declaration
- Self-employed employment termination notification
- Self-employed occupation change notification
- Paternity benefit application
- Orphans’ benefit application
- Disability benefit application
- Injury benefit application
- Funeral grant application
- Invalidity pension application
- Widow’s pension application
- Social pension application
- Insurance credit application for regular education
- Insurance credit application for National Guard service
- Insurance credit application for childbirth
- Redundancy payment application
- Employer insolvency payment application Holiday pay application
- Employer’s application for exemption from Central Holiday Fund contributions
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