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- 31 Mar 2029 AU Is your initial CDD on the new AUSTRAC model?
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UK digital ID: what the government has proposed, and what it could mean for KYC
The UK government plans a free national digital ID stored in the GOV.UK Wallet. The consultation closed on 5 May 2026. Nothing is legislated yet and there are no implementation dates.
- The government consulted on a national digital ID for British and Irish citizens and foreign nationals with permission to be in the UK from 10 March to 5 May 2026, followed by a People's Panel that ended on 21 June.
- The consultation says there will be no legal obligation for people to have or present the digital ID.
- The government proposes legislating so that right to work checks must be done digitally, with the digital ID one of the accepted forms of evidence.
- The government says it intends the digital ID to be available by the end of this Parliament, after technical build and legislation; no formal response or bill has been published.
What it is
The Cabinet Office consultation, Making public services work for you with your digital identity, sets out a proposed national digital ID. It would be a free digital document stored on a person's phone in the GOV.UK Wallet, built on existing systems such as the passport service, eVisas and GOV.UK One Login.
The consultation expects it to include full name, date of birth, a photo and nationality, and asks whether to add address. It would share only what a check needs, for example that a person is over 18, and would not include sex or gender. The government says it will legislate to create and issue the digital ID.
The policy has shifted since it was announced. The GOV.UK digital ID explainer still says the digital ID will be required for right to work checks. The March 2026 consultation is more precise: the digital ID itself will be optional, and the government proposes that right to work evidence must be checked digitally, with the digital ID, British and Irish biometric passports, Irish passport cards and eVisas as accepted evidence.
Who it applies to
Nothing applies yet. The scheme is a proposal. If it goes ahead, the proposals that would create duties are about right to work checks by employers. Regulated professional firms doing KYC would have no duty to accept it under the consultation, though it could become one more way clients prove who they are.
- Eligible people: British and Irish citizens and foreign nationals with permission to be in the UK, above a minimum age still to be decided
- Employers, under the proposal to make digital right to work checks the only way to show a check was done
- Registered digital verification service providers, which the consultation expects to do most checking in the wider economy
- Businesses and regulated firms that may choose to accept it, including for Money Laundering Regulations checks
For KYC, the consultation points to existing HM Treasury and DSIT guidance on using digital identity under the Money Laundering Regulations, and expects the GOV.UK Wallet to be certified as a digital verification service. See the Data (Use and Access) Act hub.
What you have to do
There are no legal obligations from the scheme today. These are the steps the consultation describes, so firms can plan without acting on a proposal as if it were law.
- Keep current right to work and KYC processes
Until legislation passes, existing rules apply. Professional firms keep verifying clients under their AML program.
- Check a digital ID programmatically, never by looking at a screen
The consultation says the digital ID should not be relied on by visual inspection, because a faked screen could fool a person. Relying parties would scan it, with the holder approving what is shared.
Proposed - Expect checks to run through registered providers
The consultation says only DVS providers certified under the trust framework and on the government register would be able to verify a digital ID presented from the GOV.UK Wallet. A basic Government Checker may be offered for low-volume use.
Proposed - Watch for the government response and bill
The government says it will publish a formal response once all consultation stages are considered, and an impact assessment alongside legislation.
Monitor
What firms get wrong
Coverage has run ahead of the policy, and the policy itself changed between 2025 and 2026.
The March 2026 consultation says there will be no legal obligation for people to have or present the digital ID, and that access to public services will not depend on having one.
The consultation describes acceptance across the economy as optional, alongside physical documents. The only proposed mandatory digital checking is for right to work.
No date has been fixed. The government's target is availability by the end of this Parliament, after technical build and Parliamentary approval of the legislation.
What happens when
- In force
HM Treasury and DSIT guidance on using digital identities with the Money Laundering Regulations, which the consultation builds on Source
- Proposed
Consultation on a national digital ID opens Source
- Proposed
Consultation closes Source
- Proposed
People's Panel on Digital ID concludes, ending the formal consultation process Source
- Not yet setProposed
Government response, legislation and launch; target is availability by the end of this Parliament Source
Not yet confirmed. We will update this when the date is set.
Related guides
Questions people ask
Is the UK digital ID mandatory?
Not under the current proposal. The March 2026 consultation says there will be no legal obligation to have or present it. It does propose that employers must check right to work evidence digitally.
When will the UK digital ID be introduced?
There is no date. The government says it intends the digital ID to be available by the end of this Parliament, once it is built and Parliament has approved the legislation.
What information will the UK digital ID hold?
The consultation expects full name, date of birth, a photo and nationality, and asks whether to include address. It does not propose including sex or gender.
Could the digital ID be used for AML checks?
The consultation lists Money Laundering Regulations checks among possible uses and expects the GOV.UK Wallet to be certified as a digital verification service. Acceptance would be the firm's choice. See Money Laundering Regulations.
Primary sources
Checked 5 Nov 2026. We review this page every 90 days and when the rules change.
- Cabinet Office, Making public services work for you with your digital identity (consultation page)
- Cabinet Office, consultation document CP 1498 (PDF)
- GOV.UK, People's Panel on Digital ID
- GOV.UK, Digital ID scheme: explainer
- HM Treasury and DSIT, Using digital identities with the Money Laundering Regulations
Where StackGo fits
The UK digital ID does not exist yet, and IdentityCheck does not accept it. Today IdentityCheck verifies identity from physical government documents, which the consultation says will stay valid alongside any digital ID.
- Biometric identity checks: a photo of a government ID document plus a live selfie with liveness, covering 12,500 document types from 230+ countries and territories
- It does not accept the UK digital ID, GOV.UK Wallet credentials or other digital identity credentials
- It is not certified under the UK digital verification services trust framework
- It does not do right to work checks
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