New Zealand (nz)

Biometric passport: Data retention, LEA access

According to Wikipedia, citizens of New Zealand can/must have biometric passports [doesn't imply retaining biometric information].

Biometric passport data retention

Accroding to the US Library of Congress, biometric data collected for production of passports is also retained and may be used by law enforcement agencies in Argentina, Australia, Brazil, France, Israel, New Zealand, Ukraine, and the USA.

This may — of course — gradually create creeping de-facto databases of a large part of the population (citizens who travel).

This practice is prohibited by law in Germany, Sweden, and South Korea.

National ID card: No

According to wikipedia, New Zealand doesn't have a national identity card.

National Biometric database: Rejected

Contributed by Nir Hirshman
  • EFF:

    the citizens of many countries have successfully opposed biometric national ID schemes including Australia, Canada, New Zealand, the United Kingdom, and the United States.