The EU is planning to introduce digital passports and identity cards in an effort to speed up border control checks within the 29-country Schengen zone.

Most, but not all, EU members are part of Schengen. All members of the European Free Trade Association – Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway and Switzerland, are also part of the border-free zone.

The digital documents will not replace the paper ones and will have to be used in conjunction with them.

They will also not be mandatory and will be issued only on request when someone applies for a new passport or ID.

The digital variants will be free of charge, incurring no cost to those wishing to use them.

They will contain data currently stored in the chip of passports and ID cards – this includes photos but not fingerprints.

People will be able to download the digital documents onto their smartphones.

The European Commission plans to develop an EU Digital Travel app that will allow people to self-generate the digital documents. However, the app will only be ready by 2030

Non-EU citizens with a biometric passport will also be able to use the EU Digital Travel application to create digital travel credentials for travelling to the Schengen area, the Commission said.

“Digital passports are a major step forward in strengthening security in the Schengen area and making travel easier,” said EU Commissioner for Home Affairs Ylva Johansson.

“They will allow border guards to quickly approve genuine travellers and focus better on stopping suspects of crime and terrorism.”

The announcement comes as the EU was forced to delay the implementation of its new border controls for non-Schengen visitors indefinitely.

The Entry/Exit System (EES) was supposed to be finally introduced on November 10 after two years of delays and procrastination.

The scheme will require all non-EU citizens including Brits to have their fingerprints or photos taken before entering the Schengen area for the first time once the system is activated.

However, following objections from France, Germany and the Netherlands, Brussels has been forced into a major U-turn.

The three countries are responsible for 40 percent of all inward traffic into the EU and have faced IT difficulties.

After a meeting of EU interior ministers in Luxembourg on Thursday, Ms Johansson said Brussels would look into introducing the scheme gradually after “some concerns” over the “resilience of the system” had emerged.