Council Regulation (EC) No 380/2008 of 18 April 2008 amending Regulation (EC) No 1030/2002 laying down a uniform format for residence permits for third-country nationals

The uniform format for residence permits shall include a storage medium containing the facial image and two fingerprint images of the holder, both in interoperable formats. The data shall be secured and the storage medium shall be of sufficient capacity and capability to guarantee the integrity, authenticity and confidentiality of the data.

For the purposes of this Regulation, Member States shall take biometric identifiers comprising the facial image and two fingerprints from third-country nationals. The procedure shall be determined in accordance with the national practice of the Member State concerned and with the safeguards laid down in the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms and in the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child. The following biometric identifiers shall be taken: a photograph provided by the applicant or taken at the time of application and, two fingerprints taken flat and digitally captured. The technical specifications for the capture of biometric identifiers shall be set out in accordance with the procedure described in Article 7(2) and with ICAO standards and the technical specifications for passports issued by Member States to their nationals pursuant to Council Regulation (EC) No 2252/2004 of 13 December 2004 on standards for security features and biometrics in passports and travel documents issued by Member States . The capture of fingerprints is compulsory as of six years of age. Persons for whom fingerprinting is physically impossible shall be exempt from the requirement to give fingerprints.

Where Member States use the uniform format for purposes other than those covered by this Regulation, appropriate measures must be taken to ensure that confusion with the residence permit referred to in Article 1 is not possible and the purpose is clearly indicated on the card.’;

This Regulation shall enter into force on the 20th day following its publication in the Official Journal of the European Union.