Macao’s unified strategy starts with mobile birth and marriage registration

One-time digital registration is now available for Macau residents who get married or have a child. Key life events have been added to the services available through the Macau One Digital ID platform and app, according to a government announcement.

The additions are the first steps in the government’s broader “One Thing” initiative, which “integrates cross-departmental services with a large number of applications, strong correlation, and focused processing time” to streamline processes and increase convenience. “By optimizing processes and exchanging data,” the release says, “it breaks down data barriers between the Civil Registry Office and other departments and enables marriage applications and birth registrations” to be submitted entirely online.

“One-Stop Birth” can automatically send newborns’ identification information to the Health Bureau. According to the release, “parents can now use the mobile app to conveniently register their newborn’s birth, apply for an ID card, update health insurance information and apply for maternity benefits, all in one transaction.” The government says the digital certification system has reduced the processing time for birth registrations from four business days to one.

“One-Stop Marriage” offers a similarly efficient process for newlyweds, integrating registration, scheduling, ID card updates and marriage benefit applications across multiple departments. Couples can even use the app to find a private notary who can marry them and get their marriage certificate issued the same day.

Macau One was an immediate success. The app, which launched in a pilot in 2020, had 560,000 registered users as of January 2024, about 80 percent of the SAR’s population, according to a report by Macau News.

It connects to 30 different departments and offers 330 services, but its core function is electronic identity verification via a mobile digital ID linked to a device.

In March, the Identification Services Bureau (DSI) made it possible to exchange and renew ID cards through Macau One. Macau’s latest generation of electronic ID cards (MEID) is supplied by Veridos and supports biometric identification and digital signatures. Marc-Julian Siewert, CEO of Veridos – which has been working with DSI since 2022 – calls Macau a “global trendsetter” in the adoption of biometric and digital ID technologies.

Given current Macau Chief Executive Ho Iat Seng’s plans to expand digital services and his pursuit of digital transformation across government, the Macau One app and its digital ID ecosystem are likely to become a key part of a growing number of government services and ID use cases in the region.

As a gambling hub and tax haven – especially one that is technically governed by Beijing – China was an early adopter of facial recognition and other biometric surveillance tools, both in casinos and at borders.

Article Topics

biometrics | birth registration | digital government | digital id | identity verification | Macau | Macau One