To get an EU Digital Identity Wallet, you apply through your national government’s designated wallet provider. Each EU member state is responsible for issuing at least one EUDI Wallet to its citizens and residents free of charge. The exact process varies by country, but the wallet is tied to your verified national identity. This article walks through who qualifies, when wallets become available, how to obtain one, and what it means for both individuals and organizations.

Who is eligible to get an EU Digital Identity Wallet?

Every EU citizen and resident is eligible to receive an EU Digital Identity Wallet. Under eIDAS 2.0, all EU member states are required to offer at least one EUDI Wallet to their citizens and residents. This means eligibility is broad by design. If you live in the European Union, you have the right to request and use a digital identity wallet issued by your government.

The wallet is not limited to citizens with a national ID card or passport. Residents, including non-EU nationals legally residing in a member state, are also covered. The goal of eIDAS 2.0 is to give everyone in Europe access to a secure, government-backed digital identity that works across borders and online services.

Businesses and organizations are also part of the ecosystem. While the wallet itself is issued to individuals, companies will need to accept and interact with wallet-based credentials as relying parties. This is especially relevant for organizations in sectors such as financial services, healthcare, and government services, where identity verification is a core part of daily operations.

When will the EU Digital Identity Wallet be available?

The EUDI Wallet is in active rollout as of 2026, with member states at different stages of implementation. The eIDAS 2.0 regulation set a target for member states to make wallets available to citizens, and several countries have already launched pilot programs or early national implementations. Full availability across all EU member states is expected to be reached in the coming years.

The timeline differs by country. Some member states, like Denmark with its AltID initiative, have moved quickly and are already signaling what a national wallet rollout looks like in practice. Others are still finalizing their technical infrastructure and governance frameworks. The European Commission has been running large-scale pilots across different use cases to test interoperability and functionality before broader deployment.

For organizations, 2026 is a critical preparation year. Businesses in regulated sectors will eventually be required to accept EUDI Wallets for certain interactions, which means the technical and compliance groundwork needs to start now rather than when wallets become universally available.

How do you actually obtain an EU Digital Identity Wallet?

You obtain an EU Digital Identity Wallet by downloading your country’s official wallet app and completing an identity verification process tied to your existing national identity. The exact steps depend on your member state, but the general process follows a consistent pattern across countries.

Here is how the process typically works:

1. Find your national wallet: Your government designates one or more official EUDI Wallet providers. Check your national digital identity authority’s website to identify the correct app or service.
2. Download the wallet app: The wallet is usually available as a mobile application on iOS and Android. Some implementations may also offer web-based access.
3. Verify your identity: You link the wallet to your existing government-issued identity, such as your national ID card, passport, or existing eID. This step often involves NFC chip reading, biometric checks, or verification through an existing national identity scheme.
4. Collect your credentials: Once verified, you can load government-issued attestations into your wallet, starting with a Person Identification Data (PID) credential, which is the digital equivalent of your ID document.
5. Add further credentials over time: As the ecosystem grows, you can add other verifiable credentials, such as a driving license, professional qualifications, or health data, issued by trusted authorities.

The process is designed to be accessible and straightforward. Because the wallet builds on identity data you already have, the verification step is not a full re-enrollment from scratch. It is more like a secure bridge between your existing identity and your new digital wallet.

What can you use the EU Digital Identity Wallet for?

The EU Digital Identity Wallet can be used to identify yourself online and in person, share specific personal data with services, sign documents digitally, and access both public and private services across EU member states. It is designed to replace the need to repeatedly prove your identity from scratch every time you interact with a new organization.

Practical use cases include:

• Logging in to government portals and public services without a username and password
• Opening a bank account or completing KYC checks with a financial institution
• Proving your age or qualifications without sharing unnecessary personal details
• Signing contracts and official documents with a qualified electronic signature
• Accessing healthcare services and sharing relevant medical credentials
• Enrolling at a university or verifying professional certifications
• Crossing borders within the EU using a digital travel document

One of the most important features of the EUDI Wallet is selective disclosure. You only share the data that a specific interaction requires. If a service needs to confirm you are over 18, the wallet can confirm that without revealing your date of birth or any other personal information. This privacy-by-design approach is a fundamental part of how the wallet works.

Is the EU Digital Identity Wallet safe to use?

Yes, the EU Digital Identity Wallet is designed to meet the highest security and privacy standards under eIDAS 2.0. The wallet uses cryptographic technology to ensure that credentials cannot be forged, tampered with, or used without your explicit consent. Security and user control are built into the architecture from the ground up.

Several safeguards are in place to protect wallet users. Credentials stored in the wallet are cryptographically bound to the holder, meaning they cannot simply be copied and used by someone else. The wallet also operates on a principle of minimal data sharing, so services only receive the specific information they need and nothing more.

From a governance perspective, the EUDI Wallet ecosystem is underpinned by a trust framework defined by the European Commission. Only accredited issuers can add credentials to wallets, and only registered relying parties can request data from them. This creates a controlled, auditable environment rather than an open system where anyone can request your data.

For organizations operating in regulated sectors, the wallet also simplifies compliance. Because identity credentials are government-issued and cryptographically verified, they carry a high level of assurance that satisfies requirements under frameworks like AML, KYC, and strong customer authentication under PSD2. Explore identity solutions that are built to align with these requirements.

What should organizations do to prepare for the EUDI Wallet?

Organizations should start preparing now by assessing how the EUDI Wallet will affect their identity verification processes, customer onboarding flows, and compliance obligations. Waiting until wallets are universally available before beginning technical and strategic preparation is a significant risk, particularly for organizations in regulated sectors.

Key preparation steps include understanding which use cases in your organization will involve wallet-based credentials, evaluating whether your current identity infrastructure can accept verifiable credentials, and identifying which regulatory requirements the wallet will help you satisfy. Organizations in government services and healthcare will likely face mandatory acceptance requirements, making early preparation especially important.

It is also worth mapping out the customer journey impact. The EUDI Wallet has the potential to significantly reduce onboarding friction and drop-off rates, because customers can reuse verified identity data instead of going through full verification processes repeatedly. Organizations that integrate wallet support early will be better positioned to offer faster, smoother digital experiences than competitors who delay.

Staying informed about your member state’s implementation timeline and participating in relevant pilots or consultations is another practical step. The European Commission’s architecture and reference framework documents are publicly available and provide authoritative guidance on how the ecosystem is being built. For organizations with cross-border operations, understanding how interoperability between national wallets works is equally important. Learn more about our approach to navigating these requirements.

How TrustTech helps organizations prepare for the EUDI Wallet

Preparing for the EU Digital Identity Wallet involves more than just following regulatory news. It requires translating complex technical standards and compliance requirements into concrete decisions about systems, processes, and infrastructure. That is exactly where TrustTech supports organizations.

TrustTech works with organizations across finance, government, healthcare, and other regulated sectors to help them get ready for the EUDI Wallet ecosystem. Specifically, TrustTech can help you with:

• Assessing your current identity infrastructure and identifying gaps relative to eIDAS 2.0 requirements
• Implementing verifiable credential support so your systems can accept and process EUDI Wallet data
• Designing reusable onboarding and compliance flows that leverage wallet-based identity
• Ensuring your qualified electronic signature and trust service capabilities align with the new regulatory framework
• Navigating cross-border interoperability requirements for organizations operating in multiple EU member states

Whether you are just starting to understand the implications of the EUDI Wallet or already moving toward implementation, TrustTech provides the expertise and technology to make that journey practical and manageable. Get in touch to discuss how your organization can prepare for the future of digital identity in Europe.