Tanzania’s Minister of Home Affairs Hamad Masauni on Tuesday said that the country’s national identification cards (IDs) will now last indefinitely after the government suspended their expiration dates.

Masauni said this directive aimed to do away with the unnecessary inconveniences arising from the renewal of the national IDs.

But he did not state what would happen to the current Tanzanian national IDs that have expiration dates.

Former president Jakaya Kikwete first launched the national ID renewal initiative in 2013, stating that they must be used for 10 years and renewed upon expiry. The first batch of the IDs was to expire this year, with the exercise yet to cover all eligible citizens across Tanzania.

Tanzanians were expected to pay TSh20,000 ($8.55) each when renewing their national IDs.