PRACTICAL GUIDE ON NATIONALITY be issued. This may be the case for example if there is a court order or an arrest warrant in place (e.g. due to a person’s (suspected) involvement in a serious crime). Finally, many people may have never possessed a passport, simply because they never needed it (e.g. because they did not use to travel abroad), they destroyed it or it was withheld. Identity cards Identity (ID) cards are issued by states for the purpose of identification within their national territory and may sometimes be used for cross-border travel. However, some countries do not issue national ID cards at all. Depending on the country of issuance, ID cards may have a similar probative value as passports, for instance when they may only be issued to nationals of a country. Some countries, however, also issue official ID cards to foreign nationals. In such cases, the foreign nationality of the holder may be explicitly mentioned or indirectly indicated (use of particular numbers/codes) on the card. In such a case, it can be helpful to consult COI on the conditions and requirements used to determine the mention of the foreign nationality on an ID card (e.g. type of documents required to prove foreign nationality to the administrative authorities who issue the ID card) ( 78). Useful online databases on passports and other official documents issued by countries worldwide • Public Register of Authentic identity and travel Documents Online (PRADO) ( 79) is a database of specimen of identity and travel documents made publicly available by the Council of the European Union. • ‘EdisonTD’ ( 80) is a database developed by the Dutch authorities in cooperation with the authorities in Australia, Canada, the United Arab Emirates, the United States of America and the International Criminal Police Organization (Interpol). Part of the database is publicly available. (b) Other documents Many other documents can substantiate, either by themselves or in combination with other evidence, that an applicant has a certain nationality. A list of such other documents is provided below. Consular certificates A consular certificate is a document certifying that the holder has been recorded in the register of nationals residing in an area outside of the national territory for which the consulate is competent. The main purpose of the consular certificate is to enable its holder to request (78) EUAA, Practical Guide on Evidence and Risk Assessment, January 2024, pp. 57-60. (79) Council of the European Union, ‘PRADO - Public Register of Authentic identity and travel Documents Online’, Consilium.europa website, undated, accessed 22 October 2024, https://www.consilium.europa.eu/prado/en/prado-start-page.html. (80) EdisonTD, ‘edison’, EdisonTD website, undated, accessed 22 October 2024, https://www.edisontd.nl/about. 49