A digital ID in the USA is a state-issued mobile driver’s license or ID card that lives in your smartphone’s wallet and can be used at TSA airport checkpoints, with a growing number of police agencies, and at some retailers. More than 20 states and territories now offer one, and the TSA accepts them at over 250 airports.1Transportation Security Administration. Digital Identity and Facial Comparison Technology Whether you can get one, and which app holds it, depends on where you live and what phone you carry.
States That Currently Issue a Digital ID
Residents of the following states and territories can use a digital ID at participating TSA checkpoints: Alaska, Arkansas, Arizona, California, Colorado, Georgia, Hawaii, Illinois, Iowa, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Montana, New Mexico, New York, North Dakota, Ohio, Puerto Rico, Utah, Virginia, and West Virginia.2Transportation Security Administration. Participating States and Eligible Digital IDs
The wallet you use depends on your state. Apple Wallet supports digital IDs from Arizona, California, Colorado, Georgia, Hawaii, Illinois, Iowa, Maryland, Montana, New Mexico, North Dakota, Ohio, Puerto Rico, and West Virginia.3Apple. ID in Wallet Google Wallet is available in Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Georgia, Iowa, Maryland, Montana, New Mexico, North Dakota, and Puerto Rico.2Transportation Security Administration. Participating States and Eligible Digital IDs Samsung Wallet covers Arizona, Arkansas, Colorado, Georgia, Iowa, Maryland, and North Dakota.
Several states run their own apps instead of, or alongside, the major wallets. Iowa has a free Mobile ID app.4Iowa Department of Transportation. Mobile ID Louisiana uses LA Wallet, one of the first digital IDs to gain legal acceptance for traffic stops and later certified by the TSA for federal facilities and airports.5Office of Governor Jeff Landry. Governor Landry Announces LA Wallet Accepted Nationwide New York launched its own Mobile ID app, accepted at TSA checkpoints and at participating businesses.6Governor Kathy Hochul. Governor Hochul Announces Launch of New York Mobile ID Mississippi runs a dedicated app through the Department of Public Safety.7Mississippi Department of Public Safety. Mississippi Mobile ID The TSA roster is updated as new states come online, so check it if yours isn’t listed today.
What You Need Before You Enroll
You need a valid, unexpired physical driver’s license or state ID before you can create a digital version. For TSA acceptance, that physical card must be REAL ID-compliant or an Enhanced Driver’s License.8Transportation Security Administration. REAL ID Mobile Driver’s Licenses (mDLs) REAL ID enforcement at federal facilities and airports began on May 7, 2025, so a compliant card is now mandatory for those purposes.9Transportation Security Administration. REAL ID You can usually identify a compliant card by the star at the top.10Transportation Security Administration. REAL ID – Your Destined for Stardom Self
Your phone matters too. For Apple Wallet, you need an iPhone 8 or later running iOS 16.5 or later, though California requires an iPhone XS or later with iOS 17.5 or later.11Apple Support. Present Your Driver’s License from Apple Wallet Android requirements vary by state and wallet, but generally expect Android 8.0 or newer. Confirm the exact specifications on your state DMV’s website before downloading anything.
The digital ID itself is free in every state that offers one. Renewing the underlying physical license still costs whatever your state charges, but no jurisdiction adds a separate fee for the mobile version. Your plastic card also needs to be in decent shape, because the app will scan it optically during setup. Cracks, heavy fading, or barcode damage can make the scan fail.
How to Set Up Your Mobile Driver’s License
Download your state’s official app or, if your state supports it, begin the process inside Apple Wallet, Google Wallet, or Samsung Wallet. Verify the developer name matches your state’s DMV or Department of Public Safety before installing. Fake ID apps appear in app stores, and handing your license data to an unauthorized one is a serious identity theft risk.
The steps look roughly the same on every platform:
- Scan the front of your card. The app captures a high-resolution image and reads the printed fields.
- Scan the barcode on the back. This carries encoded personal information the app confirms against the front.
- Complete a liveness check. You’ll follow prompts to blink or turn your head so the app can confirm a live person is present rather than a photo.
- Wait for state approval. Some states clear submissions within minutes; others take a few business days.
Once approved, the credential appears in the wallet or state app, locked behind your device’s biometrics or passcode. If a few days pass without a response, check the status inside the app before submitting again. Duplicates slow the queue.
Where a Digital ID Is Actually Accepted
TSA Airport Checkpoints
The TSA accepts digital IDs at more than 250 airports nationwide.1Transportation Security Administration. Digital Identity and Facial Comparison Technology At checkpoints equipped with credential authentication technology readers, you tap or hold your phone near the reader instead of handing over a card. The reader communicates directly with the wallet, so you don’t unlock the phone or pass it to an officer. The TSA still advises carrying a REAL ID-compliant physical card as backup, because readers go down and phones die.
Traffic Stops and Police Encounters
A growing number of law enforcement agencies accept digital IDs during traffic stops. Louisiana was among the first states to give its digital license full legal standing for this purpose.5Office of Governor Jeff Landry. Governor Landry Announces LA Wallet Accepted Nationwide Whether an officer can process yours depends on the equipment in the vehicle and your state’s laws. In states that formally recognize digital IDs, presenting one should satisfy the duty to show a license. In states without that framework, an officer might accept it informally but could still cite you for not carrying a physical card.
Showing a digital ID does not give an officer permission to scroll through the rest of your phone. In Riley v. California, the Supreme Court held that police generally need a warrant to search the digital contents of a cell phone, even during an arrest.12Justia US Supreme Court. Riley v California, 573 US 373 (2014) Well-designed digital ID systems avoid the issue by letting the reader pull only the credential without you handing over the device.
Retail and Age Verification
Stores selling alcohol, tobacco, and other age-restricted goods are slowly adopting readers for digital credentials. Acceptance depends on whether the business has updated its point-of-sale hardware and whether state law treats the digital version as equivalent. Look for signage at checkout. Many businesses have not upgraded, so keep the plastic card within reach.
How Your Data Stays Private During a Scan
This is where the digital version genuinely beats plastic. When you hand a bartender your physical license, they see your full name, address, date of birth, and license number, all to confirm one fact. Digital credentials built on the ISO 18013-5 standard use selective disclosure, so the system shares only the field the verifier needs.13International Organization for Standardization. ISO/IEC 18013-5:2021 – Personal Identification – ISO-Compliant Driving Licence – Part 5: Mobile Driving Licence (mDL) Application
In practice, a merchant checking your age can receive a yes-or-no answer to “over 21” without ever seeing your date of birth, address, or weight. The exchange happens through a short-range NFC tap or a QR code scan. The reader receives a digitally signed token and does not store a permanent copy. Every transaction requires you to authorize the release with biometrics or a passcode before any data leaves your phone.
If Your Phone Is Lost or Stolen
Losing a phone with a digital ID on it is less dangerous than losing a wallet in one important respect: you can shut the credential down remotely. A thief would still need your biometrics or passcode to open it, and you can act quickly to eliminate access.
For Apple Wallet, iCloud.com and the Find My app let you erase the device, which removes all cards and passes including your ID. Apple also recommends notifying your state’s issuing authority.14Apple Support. Remove Your ID Cards from Apple Wallet Google Wallet and Samsung Wallet offer similar remote-wipe tools through their account recovery flows. State apps like Iowa Mobile ID store data only on the device and inside the state’s system of record, so wiping the phone clears the local copy.15Iowa Department of Transportation. Iowa Mobile ID App None of this works unless Find My or Find My Device is turned on before the phone goes missing. Enable it now.
Why You Still Need to Carry Your Physical Card
Every state that issues a digital driver’s license also tells you to keep the physical card on you. Iowa states it plainly: “Because this technology is new, customers should continue to always carry their physical ID as a backup.”4Iowa Department of Transportation. Mobile ID Several practical reasons back that advice up:
- Dead batteries. If your phone dies during a traffic stop and you have no physical license, the outcome depends on state law and the officer’s discretion.
- Unequipped businesses. Many stores, bars, and government buildings do not have readers for digital credentials.
- Out-of-state travel. No universal reciprocity agreement exists for mobile driver’s licenses. Your digital ID may not be legally recognized by police or businesses outside your home state, aside from TSA checkpoints.
- Technology failures. App outages, botched updates, and connectivity problems all happen. A plastic card has no software dependencies.
Treat the digital version as a convenience layer over the physical card, not a replacement for it.
Penalties for Faking a Digital ID
Creating or using a fraudulent digital ID carries the same federal consequences as faking a plastic one. Producing or transferring a fake driver’s license is punishable by up to 15 years in prison under federal law, and other fraudulent uses of identification documents can bring up to 5 years.16Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 1028 – Fraud and Related Activity in Connection with Identification Documents, Authentication Features, and Information Fraud tied to drug trafficking or violence raises the maximum to 20 years, and terrorism-related cases can reach 30. State-level identity fraud and forgery charges typically stack on top. Legitimate digital IDs are also cryptographically signed by the issuing state and verified in real time, so a forged credential has to defeat the signature check, not just fool a human eye.