Regista introduces online identity validation for citizens, the first and only legal solution from a private company

Regista takes a significant new step in simplifying and streamlining the relationship between citizens and institutions by introducing the online identity validation system. Thus, Regista becomes the first and only private company to develop a secure and legal solution to facilitate citizens’ access to sensitive data. Through this functionality, users get real-time access to information such as their payment obligations, from any device, having the option of online payment of fees, taxes or fines, without physically going to the town hall, all in optimal security conditions .

Validating the citizen’s online identity is equivalent to his physical presence at the counter, accompanied by his ID. Once this new functionality is integrated, the need for physical trips to institutions is eliminated for residents of communities using the Regista platform with the taxes and fees module enabled. The new identity validation module allows any citizen to check payment obligations for local taxes, but also the possibility to pay them online. This functionality stands out as a practical solution, especially for taxpayers domiciled in another city or for those established outside the country.

The solution has been implemented by several town halls in the country and already more than 2,500 citizens have chosen identity validation in order to be able to access confidential information without going to the institution’s headquarters. In the case of interaction with the tax and tax department within the town halls, it is essential to verify with certainty whether the person who created an account on the Regista eGovernment platform really corresponds to the citizen whose information was registered. By applying this protocol, institutions ensure that sensitive personal information is not exposed to unauthorized persons.

Regista offers local public administrations the validation of citizens’ identity in 2 ways: validation at the institution’s headquarters or online validation. In the first scenario, the citizen completes the identification data online, after which he physically presents himself at the town hall office together with the identity document, where an authorized official validates his identity.

Thus, after successfully validating the identity, he is allowed access to his sensitive data and the possibility of paying fees, taxes and fines, online, directly from the e-Government account. The innovation comes in the case of the second way of validation, namely the online validation of the identity, where citizens can make the identification remotely, through a dedicated software, managed by the company Namirial, a partner of Regista.

The solution complies with the requirements imposed by Decision no. 564/2021, which regulates the procedures for the identification of people at a distance by using video means and was certified as compliant by the ADR (Authority for the Digitization of Romania). To obtain access to data related to fees, taxes and fines, the citizen follows a simple process, directly from the e-Government account. After making the online payment in the amount of 14.9 RON (VAT included), the process continues with the verification of the data from the identity document, of the applicant’s identity and confirmation by means of a unique password received via SMS to the declared phone number.

“If the citizen wants to view online the value of the fees and taxes owed to the town hall, it is mandatory to go through an identification procedure, and that identification procedure must be secure and accredited. In Romania, this process does not yet work optimally, and we come with a legal solution – in fact, the first and only legal and accredited ADR solution offered by a private company – while, in the case of other town halls, you find out personal data sensitive data of a citizen, just by entering his CNP, although 8 years have passed since the entry into force of the GDPR rules. For the new functionality, we have already received positive reactions from Romanian citizens who live abroad and who authenticated remotely, through Regista, thus managing to pay their taxes without having to personally travel to the country, for a simple situation”, says Edward Alexandru Crețescu, Regista General Manager.

“Regista remains consistent in its efforts to support digital transformation in the public sphere, and an important step in this direction is the launch of the identity validation module for natural persons. Although it is an ambitious goal, we continue to take small and constant steps to digitize Romania and contribute, too, to the increase of the DESI index”, added Edward Crețescu.

Once the process of validating a citizen’s identity is completed, online or at the town hall, a series of significant advantages result. Among them, the most important are the elimination of the need to make physical trips to the town hall headquarters for identity verification in subsequent interactions, while ensuring quick and simple access to information regarding payment obligations. The process becomes even more efficient once citizens can make quick payments of duties and taxes directly online. Through this system, the need to obtain proxies or powers of attorney is also eliminated, an essential advantage especially for those who live in other cities or outside the country. Another notable benefit is that validation only needs to be done once and is valid for all subsequent interactions with any of the 1,200 institutions enrolled in the Regista.

At the same time, as far as institutions are concerned, the online payment module, with the integration with other solutions that manage local taxes and fees, ensures an optimization of the entire process of collecting tax obligations, with payments directed directly to treasury accounts. An eloquent example of efficiency in this direction comes from Năvodari City Hall, Constanța. After the implementation of the Online Payments module in the institution, citizens have the option to easily and quickly fulfill their payment obligations to the town hall, through the process of validating the identity online or at the headquarters, thus generating a higher level of payment collection for the Năvodari town hall.

Since the implementation of Regista until now, the institution has received more than 225,000 lei through this functionality. Also, Năvodari City Hall is the first institution to integrate identity validation for the citizens of the locality:

“By implementing the Online Payments module, we continue to provide citizens with access to modern methods of interaction with our institution. They now have the possibility to pay their fees, taxes and fines online, in a secure environment, and the results are already visible, with the town hall recording an increase in the degree of collection of tax obligations. We are happy that we are an example of innovation and efficiency in local public administration, as evidenced by the distinction received by Năvodari City Hall in the Regista Gala 2024”, said Costel Aurelian Dumitrașcu, Năvodari vice mayor.

The online identification offered by Regista is a secure authentication process, its guarantee being provided by the technical partner Namirial (SignD), an internationally certified company and approved as compliant by ADR.