Standfirst: EU countries are preparing national apps for the European Digital Identity Wallet, a system designed to store credentials, access services and sign documents across borders. The rollout is due by the end of 2026, but countries are moving at very different speeds and privacy experts warn that security, interoperability and over-identification remain major challenges.
The EU Digital Identity Wallet is moving from pilot projects towards national deployment. Rather than creating one single application for all member states, the European Union is requiring each country to provide its own interoperable wallet, built around common technical standards.
The system could make everyday tasks easier, from proving qualifications to accessing public services. However, placing identity documents, health-related credentials and professional records in one digital space also creates difficult questions about cybersecurity, surveillance and what happens when a phone, app or verification network fails.
What is the EU Digital Identity Wallet?
The European Digital Identity Wallet, commonly known as the EUDI Wallet, forms part of the eIDAS 2.0 Regulation. It is intended to create a more consistent framework for electronic identification and trust services across the EU.
Citizens, residents and businesses will be able to use a wallet app to store, present and share verified digital credentials. Possible documents and services include:
- National identity documents and residence permits
- Birth certificates and driving licences
- University diplomas and professional qualifications
- Medical prescriptions and health-related credentials
- Boarding passes, memberships and other digital certificates
- Digital signatures with legal validity equivalent to handwritten signatures
The wallet is designed to work for both public and private services. A person could use it to access a tax or social-security portal, apply for a passport, open a bank account or provide proof of qualifications to an employer in another EU country.
How will the national wallets work?
There will not be one centrally operated EU app. Each member state must arrange its own wallet, while providers follow a shared European technical framework. This approach is intended to make national applications interoperable, allowing a credential issued in one country to be verified when someone uses a service in another.
For example, a graduate could present a qualification issued in Spain to an employer in Germany without relying on paper documents or separate national procedures. A person renting accommodation in Sweden could potentially present verified rental information issued elsewhere.
The wider system involves three main groups:
- Wallet providers: organisations that develop, distribute and support the apps.
- Credential issuers: public bodies, universities, healthcare organisations and other trusted entities that issue digital documents.
- Service providers: public authorities and private businesses that request authentication or credentials.
Privacy protections and the risk of over-identification
A central promise of the EU Digital Identity Wallet is that users should decide what information to share. Features such as selective disclosure are intended to let someone provide only the details necessary for a transaction. In principle, proving that a person is over 18 should not require revealing their full date of birth.
Zero-knowledge proofs may support this kind of limited disclosure, although parts of the technology and implementation framework remain under development. A privacy dashboard is also intended to show users who has accessed their information.
Digital-rights advocates nevertheless warn that convenient, verified identification could encourage organisations to demand formal identity checks more often. Activities that currently permit pseudonymous or anonymous access might increasingly become linked to a person’s legal identity.
The design of national systems will matter. A decentralised model that stores credentials on secure device hardware may reduce the amount of information held centrally. Cloud backups or centralised databases could offer convenience and recovery options, but they may also create attractive targets for cybercriminals and insider threats.
Why security and reliability are major concerns
Putting numerous credentials in one app creates a potential single point of failure. A stolen or compromised phone could expose sensitive legal, medical and professional information. An outage could also prevent access to services or documents when users need them.
Verification creates another challenge. Even if the legal framework prevents member states from tracking wallet use directly, the app must communicate with systems that confirm whether credentials are valid. Poorly designed verification arrangements could generate detailed records of when and where people authenticate.
The central policy challenge is therefore a balance between:
- Strong security against theft, fraud and cyberattacks
- Privacy and minimal data disclosure
- Simple access for citizens, businesses and public bodies
Which countries are preparing fastest?
Italy, France, Finland and Bulgaria are identified among the countries making the most visible progress. Italy has integrated its work into the IO public-services ecosystem through its IT-Wallet initiative, where digital health cards and driving licences are already being tested.
France is using the France Identité ecosystem and has created the EUDIW Unfold Playground, allowing developers and credential verifiers to test digital documents within a controlled environment.
Croatia is adapting the existing Certilia Wallet to meet the EU’s Architecture Reference Framework. Romania has also accelerated work through a private partnership supporting a hybrid model.
Progress is less advanced elsewhere. Sweden has published a roadmap pointing towards a 2028 or 2029 release, beyond the EU’s expected end-2026 deadline. Germany remains in the prototype and procurement phase, while Greece, Slovakia and other countries are still working through private testing.
What happens next?
Six large-scale pilots are testing practical uses, including travel, ticketing and payments. The projects involve hundreds of public authorities and companies across EU countries, Norway, Iceland and Ukraine. Two pilots remain active, while four have completed their work.
Member states must now turn common EU specifications into operational national services. Meeting the deadline will not necessarily mean that every wallet has identical features or the same level of public availability on day one. Interoperability, certification, recovery arrangements and independent security testing will be essential to public trust.
Does the wallet apply to Ireland?
Ireland is covered by the EU framework as a member state and will need to participate in the broader system. The practical experience for Irish residents will depend on the national wallet model, the public services connected to it and the timing of implementation.
For Irish citizens and businesses, the potential benefits include easier cross-border verification of qualifications, identity documents and signatures. However, users will also need clear information about data storage, lost-phone recovery, alternative offline processes and which organisations are permitted to request credentials.
Conclusion
The EU Digital Identity Wallet could reduce paperwork and make cross-border services more straightforward, but its success will depend on more than launching an app. National governments must deliver secure, interoperable systems that preserve user choice and avoid unnecessary identity checks. The key test will be whether convenience can be achieved without turning routine activity into a permanent record of personal authentication.
