Azerbaijan will begin recording the number of computers, laptops, and tablets in households, as well as their access to the internet, from January 2027 as part of its existing household registration system. It is unclear why the authorities intend to log electronic devices in households or how they intend to use this information. The updated forms, approved by the State Statistical Committee in October, will also record whether households have internet access and the type of connection they use. The annual household registration is governed by a 2024 Cabinet of Ministers resolution and covers information about household members, housing conditions, and property. The registration will not involve recording every electronic device in a home. Instead, officials will record whether a household has a computer, laptop, or tablet, and specify the type and number of these devices. The forms will also record whether a household has internet access and how it connects to the internet. Connections through telephone lines, cable television networks, or optical cables will be classified as fixed access, while connections through mobile phones, data cards, or USB modems will be classified as wireless access. An existing household registration system The new requirements are part of an existing household registration system established under a government decree adopted on 22 May 2024. Under the resolution, household registration is conducted annually between 1 and 30 January by local executive authorities. Officials are required to visit households and collect information from the head of the household or another legally capable adult member. The information is recorded according to the situation on 1 January of each year, meaning that even if an official visits a household later in January, the information must reflect its situation at the beginning of the month. The system covers people living alone as well as groups of people who share a home and combine all or part of their income and property and jointly consume certain goods and services. The registration covers considerably more than electronic devices. Officials also collect information about household members, including their names, personal identification numbers, dates of birth, citizenship, education, employment, social benefits, and disability status. Other information includes the size and number of rooms in a home, access to utilities, vehicles, agricultural machinery, land, crops, livestock, poultry, and beehives. The registration is conducted electronically, and local executive authorities must submit information about the number of households and their members to the relevant municipalities and statistical authorities by 10 February. Why are computers and internet access being recorded? The updated forms do not provide a specific explanation for why the number of computers, laptops, and tablets has been added to the household registration system. However, economist Razi Abbasbeyli told AzPolitika that the process was related to measuring the country’s level of digital development and was not an entirely new mechanism. According to Abbasbeyli, collecting information about computers and internet access can help identify differences between regions and social groups in terms of access to digital technology. He also said that the information could be used in international statistical reports to provide a more accurate picture of computer and internet availability in Azerbaijan. Abbasbeyli argued that the process should not be understood as an inventory of citizens’ private property, but rather as a form of statistical data collection. He added that the information could help authorities identify areas where internet access and digital infrastructure need improvement. However, the State Statistical Committee already publishes data on household access to computers and the internet in its digital development statistics. Its 2026 statistical yearbook, covering data for 2021–2025, includes information about the availability and use of computers, internet access, and digital skills among the population. According to the committee’s figures, the share of households with computers increased from 62.4% in 2015 to 76.8% in 2023. The committee also publishes a breakdown of household computers by type. Its data for 2025 showed that laptops accounted for 43% of computers in households, while desktop computers accounted for 19.5% and tablets or similar devices for 37.5%. Questions about personal data protection The expanded household registration has also raised questions about the collection and protection of personal information. Under the existing rules, local authorities collect information not only about household assets and living conditions but also about individual household members. The household registration instructions state that personal data must be collected, processed, protected, disseminated, and transferred in accordance with Azerbaijan’s Law on Personal Data and other relevant legislation. Abbasbeyli said that further clarification was needed about which government bodies would have access to the collected information, whether it would be stored in individual household databases or as anonymised statistical data, and what safeguards would prevent its transfer to third parties. The updated instructions do not require households to report every subsequent purchase of a computer, laptop, or tablet separately. Instead, the information is collected as part of the annual registration. The rules also do not give registration officials the authority to forcibly enter homes or inspect the contents of electronic devices. Under article 33 of Azerbaijan’s constitution, entry into a home against the will of its occupants is prohibited except in cases established by law or by court order.