RIYADH: The Passport Department has issued 480,000 new identity cards, known as muqeem (resident), since its launch in October.

Col. Khalid Al-Saykhan, assistant director general of technical affairs, said: “All these cards were issued online and delivered by express mail without the need for residents or their sponsors to be present at passport offices,” he said at a seminar at the Riyadh Chamber of Commerce and Industry on Tuesday night.

He said this had reduced personal contact between officials and the public by 80 percent, cut down on overcrowding at the department’s offices.

Al-Saykhan stressed that while the identity card can be used for five years, it has to be renewed annually. The department has electronic devices that can check whether a card is valid.