The Dutch national identity card is an official document that allows any Dutch citizen to prove their identity and, as long as it is valid, their Dutch nationality, just like a passport.
The purpose of this card is to enhance security and facilitate identification in electronic transactions while reducing the risk of forgery.
So, how do you verify a Dutch identity card and ensure the presented document is authentic? The answer is in this article!
Need more information on how to verify the authenticity of your ID documents ? Check out our comprehensive guide to verifying ID documents, which includes all the resources available !
Checkpoint 1: Verify a Dutch identity card by its general appearance
The first step to verify a Dutch identity card when you have access to the original document is to check its overall condition: it must show no signs of cutting, peeling, modification, or any kind of correction.
Pay particular attention to the photo area and its surroundings.
The new electronic identity card is in ID-1 format, which is the size of a credit card.
Checkpoint 2: Verify a Dutch identity card by cross-checking information
The second step to verify a Dutch identity card online is to check the consistency of the information present on the document.
Document number
The document number can be found in two different places: on the top part of the front side, and in the first line of the MRZ band.
It consists of 9 characters.
Personal number
The holder’s personal number can be found in two distinct places: on the top of the back of the card, and encoded in the QR code in the middle left of the back:
Date of birth
The holder’s date of birth can also be found in two distinct places: in the middle of the front side of the card, and at the start of the second MRZ line in the format YYMMDD:
Last name and first name(s)
Similarly, last names and first names can be found on the front of the card and in the third line of the MRZ band:
Card expiration date
Finally, the last element present in duplicate on the card: the expiration date, which can be found on the front and in the second MRZ line in the format YYMMDD:
Checkpoint 3: Verify a Dutch identity card with its MRZ band
The lower part of the new Dutch identity card consists of three lines that repeat the information present on the card, with validation keys that prevent reading errors or forgery.
Composition of the MRZ band of the Dutch identity card
First line
- Document type: 2 characters, code indicating the type of document, represented by the letters “ID”.
- Issuing country: 3 characters, the ISO 3166-1 alpha-3 code of the issuing country, for the Netherlands it is “NLD”.
- Card number: 9 characters, unique card number.
- Check digit: 1 character, check digit for the unique card number.
- End of line: chevrons ” < ” to fill the line.
Second line
- Date of birth: 6 characters, year, month and day of birth in YYMMDD format.
- Check digit: 1 character, check digit for the date of birth.
- Gender: 1 character, “M” or “F”.
- Expiration date: 6 digits, card expiration date in YYMMDD format.
- Check digit: 1 character, check digit for the expiration date.
- Country code: 3 characters, ISO 3166-1 alpha-3 code of the holder’s nationality.
- Separator: 11 chevrons “<“.
- Check digit: 1 character, check digit for the concatenation of characters line 1 positions 6-15, line 2 positions 1-7, and line 2 positions 9-15.
Third line
- Holder’s last name and first names: last name and first names of the holder, starting with the last name followed by the first name. The last name and first name are separated by two “<” characters. In case of compound last name, compound first name or multiple first names, they are separated by the “<” character. Spaces and apostrophes are replaced by the “<” character and the name is truncated to 30 characters if necessary, and any accents on letters are removed. The line is then filled with the “<” character.
Verify a Dutch identity card with the MRZ line security keys
A Dutch identity card has 4 check digits (or security keys) that validate the information preceding them.
They help avoid transcription errors or modifications, whether intentional or not.
How does the algorithm work?
The algorithm used to create and validate the check digits is common to all identity documents: characters have a weight multiplied by a factor depending on their position in the string (7, 3, and 1).
Digits have their numeric value (“0” is 0, “1” is 1, etc. up to “9” which is 9), the chevron “<” also has a value of 0, while letters are weighted from 10 for “A”, 11 for “B” up to 35 for “Z”.
Example
Let’s take as an example the check digit for the date of birth from the specimen above.
The string to validate is: “650310”.
To calculate the check digit, we proceed as follows:
– “6” has a weight of 6 and is in the first position, so multiply by 7: 6 * 7 = 42
– “5” has a weight of 5 and is in the second position, so multiply by 3: 5 * 3 = 15, added to the previous 42 gives 15 + 42 = 57.
– 0 has a weight of 0 and is in the third position, multiply by 1: 0 * 1 = 0, added to 57 gives 0 + 57 = 57.
– 3 * 7 = 21 and 21 + 57 = 78
– 1 * 3 = 3 and 3 + 78 = 81
– 0 * 1 = 0 and 0 + 81 = 81
We get a total of 81, from which we take modulo 10 (the remainder of division by 10), which keeps only the last digit, i.e. “1”.
Our check digit is therefore valid because the document shows “1”!
Individuals, do you occasionally need to verify one or more identity documents ?
Professionals, do you need to integrate proof of identity validation into one of your business processes, including all European identity cards and global passports ?
Check 4: Verify a Dutch Identity Card with its Physical Security Features
An identity document includes various elements that help validate its authenticity.
This is the final and longest step to verify a Dutch identity card online.
Front Side
Laser Engraving
Raised texture perceptible to touch, with the inscription “Koninkrijk der Nederlanden” also visible under certain angles of grazing light:
“Ghost” Photo
A secondary “ghost” photo is visible to the right of the main photo:
CAN Code
Card Access Number (CAN), a six-digit code used to establish a connection via the PACE protocol (“Password Authenticated Connection Establishment”, a password-authenticated key agreement protocol).
Ultraviolet Check
Certain features are visible only under ultraviolet light, requiring specialized equipment (thus not suitable for online verification of a Dutch identity card):
Optically Variable Feature
Elements visible by changing the orientation of the card:
Back Side
QR Code
A QR code encoding the holder’s personal number is available on the back of the card:
Conclusion
You now have all the keys to verify a Dutch identity card and ensure its authenticity!
No specialized equipment is needed: with some vigilance and time, you can avoid most common frauds encountered daily!
You can also use our service which performs verifications in seconds through our web application: results are available directly in the app and as a PDF report!
Individuals, do you occasionally need to verify one or more identity documents ?
Professionals, do you need to integrate proof of identity validation into one of your business processes, including all European identity cards and global passports ?
