Identity card BES


The Identity card BES is a uniform identity card for residents in the Caribbean Netherlands introduced upon the dissolution of the Netherlands Antilles in 2010. The cards are machine-readable and have the size of a credit card. The front contains the words Identiteitskaart followed by the island names Bonaire, Sint Eustatius and Saba. The card also contains the coat of arms of the island of issue.

Legal basis

The legal basis is the Dutch law on BES identity cards which is derived from the corresponding law on the Netherlands Antilles.
The card is valid only in the Caribbean Netherlands, not in the European Netherlands.

Physical appearance

The card contains 12 numbered fields on the front with explanation on the back in Dutch, English, and Papiamento:
  1. Surname
  2. Given names
  3. Date of Birth
  4. Place of Birth
  5. Sex
  6. Nationality
  7. ID number
  8. Card Number
  9. Status
  10. Date of Issue
  11. Date of Expiry
  12. Signature
The machine-readable strip starts with IDutch identity card.

Relation to other identity cards

The identity card of the Netherlands Antilles issued in Bonaire was machine-readable upon transition, whereas cards issued on Sint Eustatius and Saba were older and less secure. The last of those cards expired by 1 July 2011. Furthermore, the possibility will be investigated to replace the card by the Dutch identity card.