To ensure a reliable and secure digital identity for all Europeans, the European Council has adopted a new framework for a European digital identity (eID). The adoption of the European digital identity regulation is a milestone in the digital transformation of society. Allowing citizens to have a unique secure European digital wallet, while maintaining full control of their personal data, is a key step forward for the European Union. It will set a global benchmark in the digital arena and improve security when engaging with online services.

By putting citizens at the centre, the European digital identity regulation contributes to significantly enhancing and simplifying access to online public services. In this way, citizens should not have to bear the burden of administrative and institutional complexity. The revised regulation represents a clear paradigm shift for digital identity in Europe. It seeks to guarantee that individuals and businesses across Europe have universal access to secure and reliable electronic identification and authentication.

Under the new regulation, member states will offer citizens and businesses digital wallets that will be able to link their state digital identities with evidence of other personal attributes (e.g., driver’s license, curriculum qualifications, bank account, etc.). Citizens will be able to prove their identity and share electronic documents from their digital wallet in a simple way, using only their mobile phone.

The new European digital identity wallets will allow all citizens to access online services with their national digital ID, which will be recognised throughout the European Union, without having to use private identification methods or share personal data unnecessarily. User control guarantees that only information that really needs to be shared is shared.

The main elements of the regulation can be summarised as follows:

– By 2026, each member state must make a digital identity wallet available to its citizens and accept those of other member states in accordance with the revised regulation.

– Sufficient safeguards have been included to prevent discrimination against any person who opts not to use the wallet, which will always be voluntary.

– The issuance, use and revocation will be free of charge for all individuals.

– Member States are obliged to provide free validation mechanisms only to verify the authenticity and validity of the wallet and the identity of the relying parties.

– The software components of the application will be open source, but Member States have leeway so that, for justified reasons, they do not have to disclose specific components other than those installed on users’ devices.

– Consistency has been ensured between the wallet as a form of eID and the scheme under which it is issued.

Finally, the revised regulation clarifies the scope of qualified website authentication certificates, which make sure that users can verify who is behind a website while preserving current, well-established industry security norms and standards. The regulation is expected to be fully implemented by 2026.

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