One year shy of its 10th anniversary, the programme is moving towards significant upgrades, the biggest of which are moving past the physical ID card and a solution for remote identity verification.
The Estonian e-Residency Programme, celebrating its 9th anniversary today, has crossed an impressive milestone: its cumulative contribution to the national budget now exceeds 200 million euros.
According to Sandra Särav, Deputy Secretary General for Economy and Innovation at the Estonian Ministry of Economic Affairs and Communications, e-Residency programme is deemed globally as one of the strongest national brands, enriching the local business environment and consolidating the nation’s image as the world’s leading digital societies.
"Our e-Residency programme has set a high standard, while also proving to be a profitable export article. Currently it is the only government-backed e-service package that offers a 100% digital user journey for entrepreneurs around the world who are interested in setting up and running a location-independent international business. Although the programme has significantly contributed to opening up Estonia’s economy to foreign talent and capital, there is still enormous potential for new companies, business ideas and investments," said Särav, adding:
"As such, the e-Residency programme is Estonia's success story, reflecting the global competitive advantage of our digital society".
Liina Vahtras, Managing Director of e-Residency, added that the programme’s product development has reached a new level of maturity and is well positioned to achieve new heights.
"We are evolving from a government startup into becoming a growth-led organisation. The competition among the world's leading business environments is intensifying and Estonia’s value proposition contains all the advantages necessary to become the top choice for digital nomads and freelance professionals.
In addition, we are also offering solutions to remote entrepreneurs and startup founders who need to manage a bigger team to truly succeed. Our main goal is that in addition to setting up new companies, our business-minded e-residents would also choose to maintain and grow their business in Estonia. The key is maintaining a focus on the customer journey and continuing with bold product development," commented Vahtras.
According to Vahtras, the time is ripe for updates that would make the programme truly soar. Vahtras explained, stressing that these new solutions must also deliver increased security and convenience, two aspects where e-Residency makes no concessions.
"To take our user experience to a new level, we hope to move past the plastic ID cards issued to e-residents. In 2025, we plan to pilot an innovative solution for secure remote identity verification, which will benefit not only e-residents but also Estonian citizens."
Estonia launched the world’s first e-Residency programme at the end of 2014 with the aim of providing foreign nationals safe access to its public e-services. To date, Estonian e-resident status has been granted to 108,000 individuals (excluding revoked status). Thus far, the programme has generated approximately 200 million euros in tax revenue and state fees for Estonia. In addition, the programme continues to boost Estonia's international image and spurs the growth and investments of Estonian companies that offer services to e-residents and their businesses.
