On 15 April 2026, the Dutch Immigration and Naturalisation Service (IND) introduced a new Foreign Nationals identity document (type W) for applicants awaiting a decision on a temporary or permanent asylum residence permit. The credential enables holders to prove identity, nationality and lawful stay in the Netherlands, while supporting rapid first-line checks in operational environments.

Counterfeiters are no longer limited to simple print and overlay methods to make counterfeit security features. High-resolution imaging, better foils, and wider access to precision tooling mean that many familiar ‘tilt effects’ can be imitated well enough to pass quick, first-line checks—especially on identity cards and passport datapages where the attack is aimed at the portrait and personal data.

Designing next-generation identity documents requires more than layering security features. It requires structured engineering decisions that balance optical security, structural integrity, personalization technologies, and forensic resilience.

Rwanda’s Information Society Authority (RISA) has launched a procurement for a ‘Single Digital ID Card Printing and Personalisation System and related consumables’ under the Rwanda Digital Acceleration Project (RDAP). Bids are due 30 April 2026, using a two-envelope procedure (technical and financial submissions) under an international competitive process.

S. Africa’s Department of Home Affairs has issued its first electronic ID card carrying a Khoi-San traditional name that uses the click character ‘!’. The card was handed to Stellenbosch student !Khūboab Oedasoua Lawrence, after his family spent 18 years trying to obtain documents that reflected the correct spelling of his name.

The Government of The Gambia has signed a build -operate–transfer (BOT) contract with Margins ID Systems Applications Ltd (MIDSA), a subsidiary of Ghana’s Margins ID Group, to modernise the country’s identity infrastructure and produce new national identity cards.

As part of a research initiative led by Reconnaissance International, a recent industry survey set out to define the elusive ‘WOW factor’ in holographic security features.

Entrust’s new 2026 Identity Fraud Report – The Changing Face of Fraud highlights how national ID cards have become the soft underbelly of global identity systems. Compared with ePassports and many driving licences, ID cards often carry fewer physical and digital security features and can be governed by less stringent issuance processes. As a result, they represent a disproportionate share of fraudulent ID documents detected in remote onboarding and KYC checks, making them a key target for organised crime.

Germany has begun preparing for a phased transition to a quantum-secure national identity card, aiming to safeguard the cryptographic integrity of its identity infrastructure against future quantum threats. The initiative is a collaboration between the Federal Ministry of the Interior and Community, Bundesdruckerei, G+D, Infineon Technologies AG, and the Federal Office for Information Security (BSI).

The momentum behind national electronic identity (eID) programmes continues with countries across Africa, Central America, Southeast Asia, and Europe moving ahead at different stages of implementation.