The decades-old Cook Islands identification card, once used for travel before Cook Islanders gained access to New Zealand passports, are now invalid, confirmed the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Immigration.

Minister Tingika Elikana responded to concerns following the emergence of a decades-old Cook Islands identification card amid the controversy surrounding the now-abandoned Cook Islands passport proposal.

Earlier this month, Cook Islander Joe Caffrey, who opposed government’s previous proposal for a national passport, queried the validity of the Cook Islands identification card which was issued to him over 30 years ago.

Caffery urged that this identification card be revitalised if the Government wishes to identify Cook Islanders especially when they travel.

In response, Minister Elikana said this identification card was null and void decades ago and it was only issued temporarily before Cook Islanders had New Zealand passports.

He added that at the moment, the government has no intentions of revisiting this identification card to be used due to the availability of the New Zealand passport.

“It was one of my first documents used to go to New Zealand because I didn’t have a passport then,” Elikana said. “So, it was a quick way for people to get it and we were allowed to use it to be identified as Cook Islanders.”

“The provision enabling the issuing of a certificate of identity was provided in the Entry, Departure, and Residence Act 1971-72. That provision was repealed in 1980.”

Caffery’s identification card was obtained in 1988 and the last time he used it was when he was “strong and working and travelling”.

He told the newspaper because there is no expiry date on the identification card, the card is still valid.

Elikana emphasised that allegations regarding the validity of the identification card, claiming it has no expiry date, are wrong.

“The recent Immigration Act 2021 did not include any provision for a Certificate of Identity – any suggestion that the Certificate of Identity issued is still valid is incorrect,” he said.

Before the issuing of the NZ passport, Cook Islands citizens could hold a Certification of Identity as a travel document, which was not a full passport but served as a legal document that allowed them to travel.

It was issued to those who were not eligible or did not hold a full New Zealand passport, particularly in situations where a person might not be residing in New Zealand but still needed documentation to verify their identity, especially for travel between the Cook Islands, New Zealand and other countries.

In the 1980s, with the introduction of the New Zealand passport to Cook Islanders residing here, the need for the Certification of Identity document gradually declined, as it became easier for Cook Islands citizens to hold a full New Zealand passport.

The Cook Islands, along with Niue, were included within the boundaries of the “Colony of New Zealand” in 1901. In 1965, the Cook Islands was granted self-governing status by New Zealand, which continues to provide assistance with foreign affairs (upon request), disaster relief and defence.

However, it wasn’t until 1980 that Cook Islands citizens were officially able to hold a New Zealand passport, officially granting them New Zealand citizenship and the right to travel under the New Zealand passport.