One of the benefits of the digitalization of the world is that it has given freedom-leaning countries and jurisdictions the ability to jump into the forefront of innovation. As many of the more “developed” countries (e.g. those in North America and western Europe) descend into increasing government regulation and restrictions to freedom, other countries have innovated and attempted to grow. One of these innovations is the world’s first “E-Residency,” courtesy of the country of Estonia.
A former Soviet state, the country is a mix of both eastern Europe and Scandinavia. It shares land borders with Russia and Latvia, and is across the Baltic Sea from Sweden and Finland. Its two largest religious denominations are Lutheran (from the west) and Orthodox Christian (from the east).
Estonia appears to be establishing itself as a capital- and entrepreneur-friendly country, and already offers a residency visa program for investors setting up a business within the country. Now, however, Estonia has instituted a program that is the first of its kind, called the Estonian “E-Residency.”
The idea of the e-residency is a system by which interested applicants can obtain Estonian identification cards to be used for electronic commerce and verification purposes. An e-residency is not a full-fledged residential visa, nor does it grant the holder rights to stay within the European Union. Nor does an e-residency grant the holder any right to eventual Estonian citizenship.
What the e-residency does grant its holder, however, is a verified identification that allows the user to potentially set up and transact business and banking remotely. This is no small benefit in the age of FATCA. Currently, the application process takes one physical trip to Estonia, at a police station, to submit the application and biometric data (fingerprints and facial image), and a 50 Euro charge. However, according to Estonia’s e-residency website, the government hopes to eventually offer remote services so that an applicant could apply from overseas.
If you want more information on the Estonian e-residency program, go to: https://e-estonia.com/. It’s an English-language website and easy to follow.