Germany’s digital driver’s license is due to launch at the end of November in the existing i-Kfz app, the Federal Ministry of Transport has confirmed to the Frankfurter Allgemeine Sonntagszeitung. The ministry had previously given only the end of 2026 as a target. No exact date has been set, and the feature is being tested internally.
The license will not get an app of its own, and it is separate from d-you, the state-backed European Digital Identity Wallet due on January 2. i-Kfz, developed by the Federal Motor Transport Authority (KBA) and federal security printer Bundesdruckerei, has stored digital vehicle registration documents for about a year, and the KBA says it was downloaded more than a million times in its first weeks. The transport ministry cites rental cars and car sharing as the main use cases.
Setup relies on Germany’s existing national eID. Users need an NFC-enabled smartphone and a national ID card with the online ID function activated and its six-digit PIN. They hold the card to the phone, enter the PIN and the app loads the document. Anyone who has forgotten the PIN can request a new one by letter through a free government reset service. The app requires at least iOS 17 or Android 12. Huawei phones without Google services, alternative Android systems such as LineageOS and some older Motorola models are excluded.
The digital version supplements the physical license and does not replace it. It requires a valid card-format license, and without one there is no mobile version. Within Germany, drivers would no longer have to carry the card, though automobile club ADAC advises keeping it at first because not all police officers or rental firms may be ready for the new credential during a transition period. Abroad, the card is still needed.
An EU-wide digital license is planned, with implementation of the European rules possibly taking until 2030. The Bundestag passed Germany’s EUDI wallet law in October.
The license’s own legal path began when the Federal Cabinet approved a draft bill in November 2025. The Bundestag approved it in March and the Bundesrat in May, and the legal basis took effect in October. It is Germany’s second attempt: a digital license offered in the ID Wallet app in 2021 disappeared from app stores after a few days.
Sources: Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, WinFuture, Basic Tutorials
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By the ID Tech Editorial Team
