The Malaysian identity card () is the compulsory identity card for Malaysian citizens aged 12 and above. The current identity card, known as MyKad, was introduced by the National Registration Department of Malaysia on 5 September 2001 as one of four MSC Malaysia flagship applications and a replacement for the High Quality Identity Card (Kad Pengenalan Bermutu Tinggi), Malaysia became the first country in the world to use an identification card that incorporates both photo identification and fingerprint biometric data on an in-built computer chip embedded in a piece of plastic. The main purpose of the card as a validation tool and proof of citizenship other than the birth certificate, MyKad may also serve as a valid driver's licence, an ATM card, an electronic purse, and a public key, among other applications, as part of the Malaysian Government Multipurpose Card (GMPC) initiative, if the bearer chooses to activate the functions.

Other cards which are currently in use or soon to be introduced in the GMPC initiative and share similar features are: MyKid – for Malaysian citizens under age of 12 including newborns (non-compulsory); MyTentera – for Malaysian Armed Forces personnel; MyPR – for Non-citizens holding a permanent residency in Malaysia; MyKAS – for Non-citizens or stateless living in Malaysia temporarily;

Etymology The term MyKad is a compound of two words with ambiguous meanings; namely My and Kad.

My can be: the ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 code for Malaysia; or the English word my

Kad can be: the Malay word for card; or the acronym for Kad Akuan Diri or Personal Identification Card; or the acronym for Kad Aplikasi Digital or Digital Application Card.

Technical specifications of MyKad The initial MyKad was a contact card solution developed and manufactured by IRIS Corporation. Made of PC with the dimensions in the ISO/IEC 7816 ID-1 format (standard credit card format), the initial card had a 32kb EEPROM (Electronically Erasable Programmable Read-Only Memory) embedded chip running on M-COS (MyKad Chip Operating System). In November 2002, the capacity was increased to 64kb.

The upgraded and current version of the MyKad is a hybrid card containing two chips for both contact and contactless interfaces. Currently, this hybrid type MyKad is only issued in Malaysian states that employ the Touch 'n Go application.

The MyKad chip has a data retention up to 20 years, while the card itself has a lifespan of 10 years and has been tested according to the ISO 10373 standard.

Eligibility and adoption All Malaysian citizens and permanent residents 12 years old or above are eligible for a MyKad. From 2001, it gradually replaced an older Malaysian Identity Card system, that had been in use since 1949 under British colonial rule, with the intention of becoming ubiquitous by 2007. Children are issued with a MyKid after birth. This card is "upgraded" to a MyKad on the 12th birthday. The MyKad must be replaced when a person reaches 18 years old, as it is a requirement that the photograph be "current".

Adoption was optional but was spurred by the waiving of the application fee of between RM20 and RM50 until 31 December 2005. As of 27 December 2005, 1,180,208 Malaysians still held an old identity card. After the waiving period ended on 31 December 2005, each new first-time application comes with a fee of RM10.

Structure of the National Registration Identity Card Number (NRIC) The current format of the Malaysian identity card number, introduced in 1990, features 12 digits separated into three block by hyphens, as illustrated below:

YYMMDD-PB-###G

The above format is the official format as printed on the official identity documents e.g. MyKad. However, for database purposes (e.g. sorting), the NRIC Number may have its hyphens omitted, hence:

YYMMDDPB###G

The first six digits YYMMDD signify the person's date of birth in the ISO 8601:2000 format; for example, a person born on 16 September 1963 would have 630916 as the first six digits of their identity card. A person born on 1 January 1900 would have 000101 as the first digits, same with a person born on 1 January 2000. In cases where the person's actual date of birth according to the Gregorian calendar is uncertain, the date on which the person first applied for a MyKad is used (which becomes the person's birthday for official purposes), noted by an asterisk (*).

PB, the seventh and eighth digit, based on the place of birth of the person, which will be referred from the birth certificate upon application of the MyKad.

###, the ninth through eleventh digit is the generic special number generated by the National Registration Department of Malaysia's computer system. Usually, a person born prior and in the year 1999 will have the number started with 5## or 6## or 7## while a person born after and in the year 2000 will have the number started with 0##. Sometimes, the number reaches 1##, 2## and even 3## for high birth rate areas.

On the back of the card, there is an additional 2-digit number after the 12-digit number to indicate the number of MyKad which a person previously held.

Place of birth

Prior to 2001, originally, any person who was born abroad used digit 71 or 72 in their identity card number (High Quality Identity Card), regardless with or without at least one legal ascendant with Malaysian citizenship. It is estimated that about 171,023 registered voters were born abroad and used digit 71 or 72 in MyKad.

However, since 2001, any baby who was born abroad after 2001 is referred according to their place of birth rather than general digit 71 or 72 in their MyKad. It also affected any person (including citizen or non-citizen) who was born abroad regardless of their year of birth; who applying MyKad without holding High Quality Identity Card after 2001. Despite that, if any person born abroad who already had High Quality Identity Card which means they registered their identity card before 2001, they still retain digit 71 or 72 to be used in their MyKad identity card number. High Quality Identity Card was in use as the Malaysia's identity card from 1990 to 2001. After 2001, a person with High Quality Identity Card is expected to renew their High Quality Identity Card with new MyKad.

PB Place of birth (in Malaysia) 00 01 Johor 02 Kedah 03 Kelantan 04 Malacca 05 Negeri Sembilan 06 Pahang 07 Penang 08 Perak 09 Perlis 10 Selangor 11 Terengganu 12 Sabah 13 Sarawak 14 Federal Territory of Kuala Lumpur 15 Federal Territory of Labuan 16 Federal Territory of Putrajaya 17 18 19 20 21 Johor 22 Johor 23 Johor 24 Johor 25 Kedah 26 Kedah 27 Kedah 28 Kelantan 29 Kelantan 30 Malacca 31 Negeri Sembilan 32 Pahang 33 Pahang 34 Penang 35 Penang 36 Perak 37 Perak 38 Perak 39 Perak 40 Perlis 41 Selangor 42 Selangor 43 Selangor 44 Selangor 45 Terengganu 46 Terengganu 47 Sabah 48 Sabah 49 Sabah 50 Sarawak 51 Sarawak 52 Sarawak 53 Sarawak 54 Federal Territory of Kuala Lumpur 55 Federal Territory of Kuala Lumpur 56 Federal Territory of Kuala Lumpur 57 Federal Territory of Kuala Lumpur 58 Federal Territory of Labuan 59 Negeri Sembilan

PB Place of birth (outside Malaysia / abroad) 60 Brunei 61 Indonesia 62 Cambodia / Democratic Kampuchea / Kampuchea 63 Laos 64 Myanmar 65 Philippines 66 Singapore 67 Thailand 68 Vietnam 69 70 71 A person born outside Malaysia prior to 2001Excluding those born abroad without holding High Quality Identity Card 72 A person born outside Malaysia prior to 2001Excluding those born abroad without holding High Quality Identity Card 73 74 China 75 India 76 Pakistan 77 Saudi Arabia 78 Sri Lanka 79 Bangladesh 80 81 82 Unknown state 83 Asia-Pacific American Samoa / Australia / Christmas Island / Cocos (Keeling) Islands / Cook Islands / Fiji / French Polynesia / Guam / Heard Island and McDonald Islands / Marshall Islands / Micronesia / New Caledonia / New Zealand / Niue / Norfolk Island / Papua New Guinea / Timor Leste / Tokelau / United States Minor Outlying Islands / Wallis and Futuna Islands 84 South America Anguilla / Argentina / Aruba / Bolivia / Brazil / Chile / Colombia / Ecuador / French Guinea / Guadeloupe / Guyana / Paraguay / Peru / South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands / Suriname / Uruguay / Venezuela 85 Africa Algeria / Angola / Botswana / Burundi / Cameroon / Central African Republic / Chad / Congo-Brazzaville / Congo-Kinshasa / Djibouti / Egypt / Eritrea / Ethiopia / Gabon / Gambia / Ghana / Guinea / Kenya / Liberia / Malawi / Mali / Mauritania / Mayotte / Morocco / Mozambique / Namibia / Niger / Nigeria / Rwanda / Réunion / Senegal / Sierra Leone / Somalia / South Africa / Sudan / Swaziland / Tanzania / Togo / Tonga / Tunisia / Uganda / Western Sahara / Zaire / Zambia / Zimbabwe 86 Western Europe Armenia / Austria / Belgium / Cyprus / Denmark / Faroe Islands / Finland / France, Metropolitan / Germany / Germany, Democratic Republic / Germany, Federal Republic / Greece / Holy See (Vatican City) / Italy / Luxembourg / Malta / Mediterranean / Monaco / Netherlands / North Macedonia / Norway / Portugal / Republic of Moldova / Slovakia / Slovenia / Spain / Sweden / Switzerland / United Kingdom-Dependent Territories / United Kingdom-National Overseas / United Kingdom-Overseas Citizen / United Kingdom-Protected Person / United Kingdom-Subject 87 Britain / Great Britain / Ireland 88 Middle East Bahrain / Iran / Iraq / Palestine / Jordan / Kuwait / Lebanon / Oman / Qatar / Republic of Yemen / Syria / Turkey / United Arab Emirates / Yemen Arab Republic / Yemen People's Democratic Republic / Israel 89 Far East Japan / North Korea / South Korea / Taiwan 90 Caribbean Bahamas / Barbados / Belize / Costa Rica / Cuba / Dominica / Dominican Republic / El Salvador / Grenada / Guatemala / Haiti / Honduras / Jamaica / Martinique / Mexico / Nicaragua / Panama / Puerto Rico / Saint Kitts and Nevis / Saint Lucia / Saint Vincent and the Grenadines / Trinidad and Tobago / Turks and Caicos Islands / Virgin Islands (USA) 91 North America Canada / Greenland / Netherlands Antilles / Saint Pierre and Miquelon / United States of America 92 Eastern Europe Albania / Belarus / Bosnia and Herzegovina / Bulgaria / Byelorussia / Croatia / Czech Republic / Czechoslovakia / Estonia / Georgia / Hungary / Latvia / Lithuania / Montenegro / Poland / Republic of Kosovo / Romania / Russian Federation / Serbia / Ukraine 93 Afghanistan / Andorra / Antarctica / Antigua and Barbuda / Azerbaijan / Benin / Bermuda / Bhutan / Bora Bora / Bouvet Island / British Indian Ocean Territory / Burkina Faso / Cape Verde / Cayman Islands / Comoros / Dahomey / Equatorial Guinea / Falkland Islands / French Southern Territories / Gibraltar / Guinea-Bissau / Hong Kong / Iceland / Ivory Coast / Kazakhstan / Kiribati / Kyrgyzstan / Lesotho / Libya / Liechtenstein / Macau / Madagascar / Maghribi / Malagasy / Maldives / Mauritius / Mongolia / Montserrat / Nauru / Nepal / Northern Marianas Islands / Outer Mongolia / Palau / Palestine / Pitcairn Islands / Saint Helena / Saint Lucia / Saint Vincent and the Grenadines / Samoa / San Marino / São Tomé and Príncipe / Seychelles / Solomon Islands / Svalbard and Jan Mayen Islands / Tajikistan / Turkmenistan / Tuvalu / Upper Volta / Uzbekistan / Vanuatu / Vatican City / Virgin Islands (British) / Western Samoa / Yugoslavia 94 95 96 97 98 Stateless / Stateless Person Article 1/1954 99 Mecca / Neutral Zone / No Information / Refugee / Refugee Article 1/1951 / United Nations Specialized Agency / United Nations Organization / Unspecified Nationality

Applications on passport The MyKad project was developed was originally intended to have four functions: Identity card, including fingerprints and photo Driving licence Travel document in Malaysia and several neighbouring countries. However, a conventional passport is still required for international travel: the card is aimed at reducing congestion at the border by enabling the use of unmanned gates using biometric (fingerprint) identification. Storage of health information