Across the EU, a major shift is underway in terms of digital identity. The eIDAS 2.0 regulation now requires every Member State to offer citizens at least one government-approved digital identity wallet by the end of 2026.

That means verified digital credentials are set to become part of everyday transactions, from accessing government services to opening a bank account or boarding a flight. It’s a big change for citizens, but it’s an even bigger change for businesses. What started as a public-sector initiative will soon become the standard for organisations across a number of industries.

As governments build the trust frameworks and technical infrastructure to issue and endorse digital IDs, enterprises will need to adapt their onboarding and compliance processes to be able to accept them securely and with minimal friction. Those that don’t will surely be left behind.

But there is value here for businesses. Not in replacing existing verification methods, but in speeding and simplifying how they are carried out. Today’s identity verification processes are already capable, accurate, and proven in the field. Typically, this involves confirming that the person interacting with a service is the rightful owner of the identity information they provide, often by comparing a government-issued document with a real-time biometric check.

Digital IDs build on that foundation by removing many of the manual steps businesses ask customers to take, such as capturing and uploading documents themselves. They also eliminate the subsequent need to verify that data against external sources, because the information arrives already endorsed by the authoritative issuer. That means organisations receive verified attributes from an authoritative source in a single, consistent flow. This creates a more predictable experience for customers and a cleaner starting point for the business workflows that follow.

Reliable identity at source

Digital identity simply changes how information enters a system. Instead of asking someone to photograph a physical document—an action that can introduce delays depending on environmental conditions like lighting or the quality of a user’s camera—trusted attributes can be shared directly from the individual’s wallet. This reduces the likelihood of interruptions caused by poor image capture or incomplete data entry, where current verification methods would usually intervene.

Selective disclosure strengthens this model even further. Organisations need only request the information they require, and the user approves what is sent, greatly reducing the volume of personally identifiable information that businesses receive or store. This protects the user’s privacy while also lowering the compliance burden for businesses—the more personally identifiable information businesses need to store, the greater the risk if that data is compromised. Instead, verified data remains on the user’s device, and only the necessary fields are presented for that particular instance. As digital credentials become more widely accepted, organisations will be able to rely on them to support remote and in-person interactions with the same level of confidence.

Efficiency gains for users and enterprise

The real-world benefit for both users and enterprises is speed without compromise. When customers no longer need to locate an ID, find a suitable place to capture a photo, or manually type in information, the entire journey moves with less friction. Imagine a traveler in an airport who discovers they still need to complete an electronic visa for travel authorisation.

Under current methods, they would need to stop, retrieve a physical document, and find a surface to take a picture. With a digital ID, the process can be completed on the move, saving vital minutes when the flight is boarding. These improvements may be small individually, but they add up quickly when applied across thousands or millions of interactions.

Not every organisation or provider delivers identity verification with the same rigor, nor does every provider support digital credentials. By raising adoption of digital ID, the overall baseline improves. For businesses that already use strong verification methods, digital ID simply sharpens them. It accelerates the onboarding flow, reduces the likelihood of user-introduced errors, and minimises the need for further reviews triggered by inconsistent or incomplete data. Over time, these gains will turn into meaningful reductions in cost, time, and operational effort.

Biometrics and the human link in digital ID

As digital IDs roll out, biometrics will remain central to linking a digital credential to the person presenting it. They confirm that the individual using the digital ID is its rightful holder, but for this to work reliably, biometric systems must be well governed, trained on diverse datasets, and capable of resisting spoofing and injection attempts.

When combined with verified digital credentials, biometrics create a layer of assurance that is simple for users and consistent across channels; digital credentials supply authoritative data without requiring people to repeatedly handle physical documents, while good biometrics reliably confirm that the right person is in control of that data.

As adoption grows, digital identity will help to create consistent levels of assurance across both remote and in-person interactions, and that will help organizations build a predictable, high-assurance foundation they can extend across channels and markets.