In early 2019 the number of eID cards has reached over 4 million in Hungary [1]. It was introduced on 1 January 2016 so it took about 3 years to achieve this number. This card serves multiple purposes. It can be used as a travel document (ePASS), as an electronic signature card (eSIG), as an identification card (eID) and it is part of the national common card system (eNEK) where it can be used for public transportation (in Debrecen and in a couple of railways lines).
The eID card contains all personal and document data that is visually displayed on it, the social security and tax identification numbers and the unique electronic identifier of the personal identification card. There are also three optional data elements. The first is the citizen’s fingerprint, the second is a pair of emergency telephone numbers and the last one - the most significant for PKI - is the element for creating electronic signatures. This entry contains the electronic signature creation data and the owner’s qualified certificate for electronic signatures.
This function is available only to Hungarian citizens. The permanent personal identification cards issued to immigrants, established persons, refugees or persons with subsidiary protection are different in their visual appearance from the documents issued to Hungarian citizens and these cards do not entitle the holder to travel abroad.
The eID cards have the same security level as the passports, so they can be used for crossing borders in the listed countries. In these supported countries, the eID card can simplify and speed up the border-crossing process.
For example, when a card owner is passing the border-crossing gate, it reads the MRZ code or the CAN number from the card, then it obtains the personal data, the facial image and the fingerprint from the chip. These data are checked according to a set of European rules, for example filtering out people with travel restrictions. After this process there is a fingerprint control where the cardholder's fingerprint is compared to the fingerprint stored on the card. If everything is all right, the citizen can pass the border.
There is a special application for public transport, which is automatically placed during production on cards issued after 14 November 2016.
When using public transport (only a couple of train lines support it), the inspector reads a unique identifier (the traffic identifier) from the application – no CAN or PIN code is required for the reading. This identifier can be used to verify that the passenger has a valid pass.
For the eID function the most important thing is to memorize your 6-digit PIN code you entered during the registration process. In an administrative process a citizen can easily provide his or her own personal data. During the process, when you enter your PIN, you can give consent to the authorized body to access the appropriate data on your eID card. Access to every data element can be individually controlled on a card.
This table shows which e-identification functions can be used by the different types of cards:
e-identification functions of personal ID cards issued to |
Hungarian citizen |
Foreign citizens |
Checking the validity of personal ID cards equipped with storage unit |
+ |
+ |
Client portal registration from home, without personal attendance |
+ |
+ |
At the customer services of the Document Office and the Government Office the Client can check the data on the storage unit as well as the organizations authorized to access them |
+ |
+ |
Faster access to Social Security Identification (TAJ number) for health care and to facilitate emergency healthcare |
+ |
- |
Reading a tax identification sign and related data circuit during tax administration before the tax authority |
+ |
- |
Entering a telephone number to be called in the case of emergency on the storage unit |
+ |
+ |
Electronic identification service in Központi Azonosítási Ügynök (Central Authentication Agent) |
+ |
- |
Which e-identification function can be used by the different types of cards
It is worth for the citizens to request the electronic signature option as well when applying for an eID card. Firstly, the card owner can create qualified e-signatures and timestamps for completely free. Additionally, in the European Union qualified electronic signatures have the same legal effect as handwritten signatures. Furthermore, the e-signatures can be used for public administration tasks as well.
For electronic signature and timestamp operations you have to use another 7-digit PIN code. You can specify this PIN when you request a qualified signature certificate for your card. The certificate is valid for 2 years, but you cannot renew your certificate remotely. An eID card for an adult person is valid for 6 years, therefore up to two new certificate applications are possible for the same card. Moreover, in case of electronic signatures there is a transaction limit of 10000 euros. It is secure because it uses ECC with the NIST-P256 curve for e-signature. You can read more about elliptic curve cryptograph here. It is important to note that the owner of the card may only use it as a private person and may not use it as an employee or company representative.
Firstly, you need to have a card reader and a card reading application. You can check out some recommended card readers on the official page of the Hungarian eID card. You also need a signature application. On the official page you can find a national electronic signature creation and validation application named KEAASZ, but this is available in Hungarian only. If you would like to use an alternative free signature creation application - which also supports the English language - you can download the e-Szignó application. If you prefer to use web applications, you can easily try the web-Szignó which is also available in English.
The future goal with the eID cards is to create a standardized, unified card system within the European Union. This means that every EU citizen with their personal ID card will be able to use any public administration systems in any member states. There is currently no uniform EU regulation on card issuance. [2]
References, more information:
[1] https://hirlevel.egov.hu/2019/01/26/tobb-mint-negymillioan-hasznaljak-az-e-szemelyit/
[2] https://eszemelyi.hu/in_english
© 2024 Microsec Ltd. | Company registration number: 01-10-047218 | Tax number: 23584497-2-41