MOBILE ID: Users can use it to verify their identity at compatible TSA checkpoints via NFC or QR code
Residents of Arizona, Colorado and Georgia in the US can now add digital versions of their state-issued identity card and driving licence to Google Wallet on their Android NFC smartphone and use it to verify their identity at select Transportation Security Administration (TSA) checkpoints.
All three states have confirmed that the service has gone live for Google Wallet users, with Arizona Motor Vehicle Division (ADOT) adding that while the digital credentials can currently only be used at TSA checkpoints supporting digital ID verification, “more options to use your US driver’s license and State ID are coming soon”.
Once users have created the digital credential in Google Wallet by scanning their physical driving licence or ID card, they can use it to verify their identity at compatible TSA checkpoints by tapping their smartphone on an NFC reader or by presenting the credential’s QR code for scanning.
At present, users still need to carry their physical documents as the digital credential “is not a replacement for the physical card” and “various agencies, including law enforcement, are not yet accepting […] ID in Google Wallet as a valid form of identification”, Colorado’s Division of Motor Vehicles explains.
A short video shows how users can create a digital driving licence or state ID in Google Wallet.
Apple rolled out digital IDs and driving licences for iPhone users in Arizona in March 2022, Colorado in November 2022 and Georgia in May this year.
Maryland became the first US state to make mobile IDs available to both Apple and Google wallet users in June.
Google Wallet lets users store digital IDs and driving licences on Android smartphones in Arizona, Colorado and Georgia was written by Tom Phillips and published by NFCW.