Hundreds of Russian passports have been issued in Crimea, a source from the Crimean law enforcement authorities told Interfax on Friday.

"Passport applications are being lodged on a massive scale. Several hundreds [of passports] have already been issued," he said.

The passport issue system, which is being installed in Crimea, is much better than the previous one, he said.

Federal Migration Service head Konstantin Romodanovsky said on Wednesday that Russian passports were being issued in Crimea.

"I think the intensity of the issue of [identification] documents will grow each day as citizens file their applications," Romodanovsky said, responding to an Interfax question.

On Wednesday the State Duma passed a federal constitutional law "On the Procedure for the Accession of New Constituent Territories - the Republic of Crimea and the Federal City of Sevastopol - to the Russian Federation." The law was submitted by the Russian president.

Most Crimean residents chose unity with Russia at a referendum held last Sunday.