E-Residency In Estonia

1. Introduction

   As the world seems to develop faster and faster, a new gadget has been placed to the disposal of the foreigners and non-resident persons in Estonia, namely the digital identity card also known as e-residency. The primary goal of this idea is to simplify the process of using the Estonian public and private services by using secure e-services, which are already available to Estonian citizens.

   At October 21, 2014 the digital e-residency rights that are already available to Estonian nationals, were extended to also apply to foreigners as from December 1, 2014. The extension of such e-residency rights to foreigners is expected to attract around 10 million "digital citizens" by the end of 2025. Considering that the population of Estonia is a mere 1.3 million people, such e-residency program may greatly benefit Estonia's economy.

2. The Utility of e-Residency

   It should be noted that e-residency is usable only in a digital environment for identifying a person and providing a digital signature to access certain e-services. It also provides access to numerous online services which includes bank management, government dealings, company management, contracts, business/company registration, child benefit applications, payment of administrative fines such as parking/speeding tickets, and even checking medical records online.

   It should be noted that as far as e-residency is concerned, a digital signature of a person shall have the same legal consequences as a hand-written one as long as the relevant legislation does not state otherwise. However, it should be noted that this only applies within the confines of the Estonian Law, and therefore the legal standing of a digital signature shall be subject to the relevant country's law and the agreement between the parties outside Estonia.

   Both authentication and digital signature are called certificate, which binds the necessary data for certifying the authenticity of the person and the digital signature with a person and certifies the identity of the person. The digital ID card and its certificates are valid for three (3) years and the renewal of certificates is not possible. This process differs from the ID-cards issued prior January 1, 2007, which were, and in some cases still are valid for ten (10) years and its certificates for three (3) years. The certificates of such ID-Cards could be renewed free of charge upon the expiry of their validity.

   It should be noted that with the new e-residency...