Digital driving licence, what it is and how it works. Here’s what we know so far

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Our driving license will also be available in an all-digital version, starting this year, on a smartphone. In particular, it will be accessible in the IO institutional app, with a qrcode containing all the information. Exactly as happened with the covid green pass.
The Government (undersecretary for innovation Alessio Butti) has confirmed its intention to follow this path, also anticipating the launch in 2023, continuing on the path envisaged by the previous Government.
The health card and electoral certificate will also end up in the IO app, even if the revolution is above all in the digital driving licence; omnipresent document in the life of Italians, both as a driving license and as an identity document, shown for example when boarding an airplane.

What is the digital driving licence

The digital driving license will be an electronic version of the traditional paper driving licence. It will be memorized and made accessible through the IO app, an app which is a centralized point of access to digital public services and which has been very useful during the covid for requesting various government bonuses and for the green pass. The goal is to simplify the management and presentation of the driving licence, making it safer and reducing the risk of loss, theft or forgery. The IO app will therefore be the point of reference for the storage and presentation of the digital driving licence. Access to the app and its related contents and services (license included) will take place as usual via Spid or Cie (Electronic Identity Card). We remind you that the digitization of the registration certificate and of the certificate of ownership have already taken place thanks to the new DU, Unique documents of circulation and ownership. Now it’s the driver’s license step.

What will the digital driving license be like?

The digital driving license will have a number of features that will make it a safer and more convenient alternative to the paper version. It will have a secure authentication system, thanks to digital identity (Spid or Cie) with a double level of authentication. It will have a qrcode, which will allow the police or other competent authorities to quickly and reliably verify the authenticity of the document and the information contained, thus reducing the risk of forgery. Then there are other advantages that do not immediately come into mind but who are important children of digitization. The license can have updates in real time: the information will always be updated. The holder will thus always be able to check the status of his licence, the number of points remaining and any expiry dates, all in the same app (now it is necessary to use the one for the motorisation).

The IO app will also send push notifications to the digital driving license holder, informing them, for example, of the approaching expiry of the document, the need to renew it or any administrative penalties. Another convenience that we have seen, with IO, for other deadlines such as that of the car tax. The electronic driving license will also be recognized in all member states of the European Union, without exclusion. The project is in fact part of the European initiative for a community digital wallet, with various elements associated with citizens’ digital identity. As far as we know today, we will still be able to print the documents, so that they can also be used in an analogical way. Especially useful for those who are less familiar with digital tools.

When will the digital driving license arrive?

The Government has announced that the expected date for the digital driving license is this year; however, there are no formal deadlines indicated by law, so any delays are possible and predictable. In any case, the road to a digital driving license (and not only) seems to be traced, also given the path identified in Europe. The IO app will become an ever more complete center of everything that concerns us in relations with the public administration, including the health card, the electoral card, the driving licence, payment services to the PA (fines, taxes …) and so on.