The launch of a passport card for Irish citizens that enables European travel will now be delayed until September due to durability alterations.The passport card, which citizens can apply for using a mobile app and "selfies" will be valid for a maximum of five years and available to all Irish citizens who are over 18 and hold a valid Irish passport.This week a department spokeswoman said while a target date of July had been set, to improve the durability of the card "the manufacturer deemed it necessary to alter the polycarbonate structure", reported the Irish Times. The card is being developed by Irish security printing firm DLRS Group."This will mean that the card issued to the public meets the highest international standards of polycarbonate cards. It has caused a slight lengthening of the time it takes to manufacture the card, and the new target date of issue is mid-to-end of September."Speaking at the launch of the card in January, Foreign Affairs Minister Charlie Flanagan said the initiative was "both unusual and pioneering". He added that the card's security features are "second to none", and that a hologram photo on a strip on the back is the first time this security feature will be used on travel documents.

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