As had been expected, California has officially announced the upcoming roll out of support for digital driver’s licenses and IDs in the Wallet app on the iPhone and Apple Watch. The state will join the ranks of five other states that have implemented the feature since Apple first announced that it would be adding support for digital IDs in the Wallet app back in September 2021.
California launched its own mobile driver’s license program in its DMV Wallet app a year ago and since then, more than 500,000 California residents have added their driver’s license or ID to the app. Californians are still required to carry their physical driver’s license or ID card on their person, as the digital version is not yet accepted by law enforcement, government agencies, or most businesses. California’s mobile wallet support is still in its early stages and currently only 1.5 million residents are allowed to sign up at this time.
“We’re excited to be working with the state of California to bring IDs in Apple Wallet to Apple’s home state soon, and provide residents with an easy, secure, and private way to present their California driver’s license and state ID in person and in-app using Apple Wallet,” said Jennifer Bailey, Apple’s vice president of Apple Pay and Apple Wallet. “Whether using IDs in Apple Wallet to breeze through travel or to securely verify age or identity at businesses, California driver’s licenses and state IDs in Apple Wallet make ID presentment seamless — all with the security built into iPhone and Apple Watch.”
Users with an ID in Apple Wallet can use their iPhone or Apple Watch to present their ID in person at select TSA security checkpoints and businesses, as well as in select apps to verify their age or identity.
As we reported earlier this month, a hidden landing page was discovered on the California state government DMV website. The page was intended to explain the feature to California residents.
Apple announced plans to add support for digital IDs back in September 2021, but since the feature requires states to implement support, the rollout has been quite slow. In 2021, Apple said that it was in “discussions with many more states” and was optimistic that Wallet IDs would be available nationwide in the future. Connecticut, Hawaii, Iowa, Kentucky, Mississippi, Oklahoma, and Utah are also reportedly working to add support for driver’s licenses or digital IDs to the Wallet app.
Ohio last month became the fifth state to add Wallet support, joining the ranks of other states offering Digital ID support in Wallet, including Arizona, Maryland, Colorado, and Georgia.