In the United States, it is possible to store a digital copy of your driver’s license in Apple Wallet on your iPhone. (Provided your state allows it: currently only 10 do so, while nine more have promised to do so in the future.) But there are few signs that this is becoming an option for iPhone owners in the rest of the world.
However, there is some good news in this regard for UK readers, because the British government has announced that it will launch its own digital wallet and that it will be possible to use it to store a digital driver’s license and other important documents. This certainly doesn’t have the same appeal as a single storage point for all your bank cards, ID cards and tickets. But it’s something – and remember that if you don’t have a national ID, your driver’s license can be used to prove your age when purchasing age-restricted items online or in person.
Science Minister Peter Kyle made the announcement on January 21. The wallet app, which will be available for Android and iOS, will be launched later this year, and a digital driving license will also be trialled in 2025. Other elements of the scheme may take longer to come into force, but ministers insist All government services will be required to offer a “digital alternative alongside paper or card credentials” by the end of 2027.
“Along with CDs, Walkmans and flip phones, the drawer filled with letters from the government and the hours spent waiting for an essential appointment will soon be consigned to history,” Kyle said. “GOV.UK Wallet means that every letter or identity document you receive from the government can be issued to you virtually.”
The government also announced a new GOV.UK app designed to make public services easier to use (and more “friendly to modern life”) such as reporting lost passports, and plans to use the technology in the public sector.