Cie for life for the over 70s and digital voter cards: what changes with Dl Pnrr

Reducing bureaucracy by leveraging digitisation. This is one of the key objectives of the Dl Pnrr (Dl 19/2026) that, approved in the Chamber of Deputies with 145 votes in favour, 4 abstentions and 62 against, will reach the Senate next week and must be converted into law by 21 April. The streamlining of burdens on citizens (especially the most fragile), therefore, is not just a slogan and takes shape in a series of concrete measures: from the electronic identity card with no expiry date for the over 70s to the digital electoral card, up to the direct acquisition - by public administrations - of data on the Isee through the National Digital Data Platform. But let us try to understand in detail what will change.

A long-awaited novelty, or at least ever since the Minister for Public Administration, Paolo Zangrillo, announced in November 2025 the government's intention to abolish the periodic renewal for citizens over seventy, the measure provides - as stated in Article 6, paragraph 2 of the decree - that the electronic identity card, issued to persons who are aged seventy or over at the time of application, will be valid indefinitely. There is, however, one requirement: the provision will only apply to documents issued on or after 30 July 2026. All identity cards issued before this date, on the other hand, will continue to be valid for ten years and will have to be renewed in accordance with the canonical rules in force up to now and in line with the security standards laid down by European legislation.

For the rest, little has changed: the Cie 'for life' may continue to be used for expatriation or as an instrument of authentication to the online services of the public administration (as an alternative to Spid). And, above all, the right of the person concerned to ask for its renewal after ten years if necessary for the digital authentication certificate, which is useful for using the online services provided by public and private bodies, remains unaffected.

In the management of the renewal procedure, therefore, the individual municipalities will have to adopt the new regulations as a reference and, as regards special cases (for example, an over-70s person residing in Milan but who, in order to undergo a series of treatments, is forced to move permanently to Palermo for a year), there are no exceptions: he may apply for the Cie without limitation at the municipal offices of the city where he is temporarily located and it will be at their discretion to inform the Municipality of residence of the application.

Between now and the next few months, municipal administrations could set up Open days and services to manage the procedures for issuing the Cie (apart from the novelty for the over-70s, from 3 August onwards there will be for everyone the obligation to have an electronic identity card). There are municipalities that are already doing this, involving all citizens with no age difference in the call to reserve slots. And others, such as the Municipality of Milan, which have enhanced this service especially for the over-70s, contacting them by telephone. These are, in any case, initiatives at local discretion, managed in relation to the volume of requests and also tied to the availability of the offices in terms of human resources to be employed.