What is Digital ID?

An easier, more secure, and voluntary way to verify your ID

Gathering your ID documents and going to a shopfront or office to confirm your ID can be time-consuming and challenging. 

Your Digital ID lets you verify your ID online for work, education and personal use. You can use your Digital ID online anywhere, anytime. Each time you use your Digital ID, you will need to agree before any of your information is shared with the service you want to use.

Your Digital ID is an online method of confirming your ID that does not require physical documents. Digital ID does not replace your physical ID documents. It is a more secure and convenient alternative to traditional forms of ID. Digital ID can make it easier for you to do things like changing jobs, applying for a rental or accessing many government services online.

Choice 

The decision to create and use a Digital ID is up to you. 

If you can’t use Digital ID, or don’t want to, you can keep accessing government services. This can be done over the phone or in person at government shopfronts across the country. 

Eligibility

You must be 15 years or over to create a Digital ID using the Australian Government's ID provider myID. You will also need to have your own an email address and a smart phone or tablet.

ID proofing levels

When accessing or applying for services, you often need to prove who you are. Services have different ID requirements depending on the level of risk of providing services to the wrong person. Read more about ID proofing levels.

Watch: What is Digital ID 

For individuals

Digital ID lets you access online services without looking for physical ID documents or going to a government or business office. You can manage your affairs from anywhere, whenever you want.

Using a Digital ID means fewer organisations will need to keep your personal information. This will lower the chances of your data being stolen. 

A Digital ID will:

• reduce the need to remember usernames and passwords to sign into online services.
• enable more services to be offered online with a secure way to check your ID wherever you are, at any time.
• not replace any of your ID documents. It will give you a simpler and safer way to prove your ID online. 

Read more about Digital ID for everyday life.

Next step: Setup and manage your Digital ID

Watch: Who can use Digital ID and is it compulsory?

For business

Digital ID changes how businesses and organisations collect, verify or store personal information. Relying on a Digital ID means you can replace your current processes for verifying a customer’s or employee’s ID with more streamlined processes that use far less personal information.

Digital ID can also:

• provide options for account authentication, allowing returning customers to log in securely to your services or systems.
• enable you to move more services online, helping to reach new customers, and make accessing those online services more secure.
• help streamline processes for background checks to make it easier and faster to onboard new employees

Next Step: Read more about using Digital ID in your business or organisation

Watch: What Digital ID can do for your business

For government

Digital ID is a tool for improving online government services.

Online government services make it easier to access the services you need from government. This is especially for people in remote areas and Australians with disability. A secure and trusted ID solution will enable more responsive and tailored services.

These benefits include:

• more efficient government service delivery. e.g. shortening the time to get a tax file number from 28 days to 10 minutes.
• faster help from government and business for people who lose access to their ID documents. This may be due to scams or other situations, such as natural disasters or family violence.

Benefits of using Digital ID in the Commonwealth Government.

If your organisation is a commonwealth entity and needs to identify people to allow them to access your systems and services, then your organisation could benefit from using Digital ID.  An organisation that uses Digital ID is known as a relying party. Commonwealth agencies using the Australian Government Digital ID System (AGDIS) are known as participating relying parties.

Digital ID is an online method of confirming an individual's ID that does not require relying parties to see or store copies of the user's physical documents, reducing the risk that data is lost or stolen.  

Digital is a more secure and convenient alternative to traditional forms of ID verification. Agencies can use it to digitally verify the ID of staff and clients or customers.

Next steps: Resources and guidance for participating in the Australian government Digital ID system.

Meeting the Governments Digital Experience Policy 

Adoption and use of Digital ID within your agency helps to meet the required standards that make up the Digital Experience Policy.  Some examples of how Digital ID meets these standards are: 

• Aligns the user experience with other government platforms,
• Improves data security, transparency and handling processes
• Provides an inclusive and accessible alternative for ID verification
• Allows you to engage with myID as a delivery partner

For more detailed information please read the Digital Experience Toolkit which provides check lists for new and existing services. 

Reduced administrative burden

Adoption of Digital ID can lead to a reduction in manual ID verification that needs to be done within an organisation. The process is completed digitally reducing the risk of human error, and repetitive handling of sensitive personal data. This provides your agency with:

More efficient government service delivery. e.g. faster employee or contractor onboarding, or shortening the time to provide individuals access to your systems.

Enable customers that have lost access to their ID documents to continue access your services. They may have lost their access due to scams, natural disasters or escaping family/domestic violence.

What government services can use Digital ID

The following are examples of functions within government organisations that can benefit from the use of Digital ID.

Internal:

• Employees booking flights, corporate credit cards, work phones etc.
• On boarding new staff, contractors and consultancies.
• Building security such as forgotten passes, guess sign ins.

External:

• Secure verification of new users
• Users logging into government portal, sites or systems
• Using needing to verify who they are after ID documents have been lost or are inaccessible.

Digital ID accreditation

What is accreditation?

The Australian Government operates a voluntary accreditation scheme for:

• Identity service providers
• Attribute service providers
• Identity exchanges

Becoming accredited shows that the service meet high standards for:  

• accessibility and usability,  
• privacy protection,  
• security and fraud control,
• risk management and
• technical integrity.

In addition to the benefits users will be receiving through the use of a digital ID, accreditation will build consumer confidence and trust.

Accredited organisations receive:

• access to a Trustmark logo.    
• user confidence that their data is secure and that your service meets government-set standards.  
• listed on the Digital ID register of accredited entities.

More information and next steps: Guidance for ID providers looking to become accredited.

The Australian Government Digital ID System (AGDIS)

What is AGDIS?  

The Australian Governments Digital ID System (AGDIS) enables individuals to verify their ID online for certain government services. This means no unnecessary sharing of sensitive documents (such as passport or birth certificate).  

Who is eligible to join AGDIS?  

Commonwealth, state and territory government entities are currently eligible to join AGDIS. Private sector entities will be able to apply to join by December 2026.  

Providers joining AGDIS  

If accredited, you can apply to join AGDIS. This is not mandatory; but you cannot join unless accredited.  

Joining the AGDIS allows your organisation to provide Digital ID services to participating government agencies and businesses.  Providers of Digital ID services operating within AGDIS  are subject to additional regulatory requirements, some of which will also apply to relying parties.

Next steps: Resources and guidance for participating in the Australian government Digital ID system.