Transnistrian residents to get biometric passports on conditions applied to Moldovans

Chisinau, 22 July /MOLDPRES/ - Transnistrian residents will be able to get biometric passports under the same conditions as Moldovans. They will be obliged to pay a tax in order to be issued the passport. The cabinet took a decision to this respect today.
Under a government decision of March 2014, the Transnistrian residents benefited for free from the issuing of the first identity card and passport. The costs have been covered from the state budget. The implementation of the mentioned decision coincided with the visa regime liberalisation for Moldovans. As a result, it was noted „a significant increase in flow of citizens who requested a biometric passport”. 
 
 The number of applications submitted by Transnistrian residents for this type of passport has doubled and, respectively, the costs rose up by about 2.5 million lei. As much as 1.8 million lei were planned by the state budget for 2015 in this respect. Thus, the money was spent in six months.
It was proposed to exclude the gratuity when issuing the first passport for Transnistrian residents.
Thus, Transnistria’s residents will benefit from facilitations when issued the identity card under general conditions stipulated for citizens of the right bank of the Dniester. This approach will be equal compared the other citizens, the Information Technology and Communications Ministry says.
(Reporter V. Bercu, Editor L. Alcaza)