Germany's EUDI Wallet: d-you, the dates and what businesses must do

Last reviewed: 5 October 2026 · Not legal advice

The europäische digitale Identität (European digital identity) is the EU's plan to give every citizen and resident a digital identity wallet. German law calls it the "Europäische Brieftasche für die Digitale Identität", the EUDI-Wallet for short.^[5] Germany is building a state wallet, d-you, due to open to the public on 2 January 2027.^[3]

This guide is for German banks, telecom operators, gambling, adult content and age-restricted sales.

What Germany's EUDI Wallet is: the European digital identity in one app

EU law defines the European Digital Identity Wallet as an electronic identification means that lets the user store, manage and validate person identification data (PID) and electronic attestations of attributes, present them to relying parties (RPs), and sign with qualified electronic signatures. The rules come from eIDAS 2, Regulation (EU) 2024/1183, which amends Regulation (EU) No 910/2014; article numbers below are those of the amended 2014 regulation. Every Member State must provide at least one wallet, under an electronic identification scheme at level of assurance (LoA) high.^[1]

Germany's wallet is run by the state: the federal digital ministry (BMDS) owns it, and the Federal Agency for Breakthrough Innovation (SPRIND) builds it with the Federal Office for Information Security (BSI) and others.^[4] According to the government FAQ, the Android and iOS app starts with the ID function; credentials such as the driving licence follow, and signatures are planned in the course of 2027.^[2] Launch partners include the savings bank and cooperative bank associations (DSGV, BVR), KfW, Vodafone and E.ON. The launch-day use cases are proving age, signing contracts and opening a bank account.^[3]

Timeline: from sandbox to the acceptance duty

The draft law says the wallet should be in nationwide use from January 2027, in line with the EU deadline of 24 December 2026 for Member States.^[1][5]

1. December 2025SandboxDate per the government FAQ; BMDS says 2026.
2. 23 September 2026First readingDIdG debated and sent to committee.
3. 2 January 2027d-you launchPlanned public app, about 40 partners.
4. 10 July 2027AMLR applieseID becomes an EU-wide KYC route.
5. 24 December 2027Acceptance dutyRegulated private relying parties.

Germany's wallet dates.^{[1][2][3][4][5][10]}

All EU dates: EUDI Wallet deadlines 2026 and 2027; other countries: the launch tracker by country.

How the EUDI Wallet relates to the Online-Ausweis

The Online-Ausweis is the eID function of the German ID card, the residence permit and the eID card for EU and EEA citizens, notified at LoA high since 26 September 2017.^[7] The user holds the card to an NFC phone, is shown the provider's certificate, and only then enters the card PIN.^[6] According to the eGovernment MONITOR 2025, 25% of the population use it and 42% have it ready.^[8]

According to the Bundestag's first-reading note, the draft law does not replace existing identification means, and wallet use stays voluntary.^[5]

An earlier phone eID, the Smart-eID, was halted in December 2023, according to heise.^[16] The same Bundestag note describes the wallet as the first eID means at level high for mobile devices.^[5]

The card-based eID and the wallet side by side.^{[1][2][6][7][12]}

The card route needs a state authorisation under § 21 PAuswG, granted by the VfB and valid for at most three years.^[12] See the Online-Ausweis integration guide.

What the user sees: the EUDI Wallet presentation flow as specified

A presentation starts with a website button, a QR code, or NFC in person.^[2] The d-you screens were not published by 5 October 2026, so the strip illustrates the EU reference framework flow, not the d-you app.

Remote presentations use OpenID for Verifiable Presentations (OpenID4VP) with the HAIP profile, or ISO/IEC 18013-7; the PID comes in SD-JWT VC and ISO/IEC 18013-5 mdoc formats. The Architecture and Reference Framework (ARF) is at v3.0.0 (23 July 2026).^[11][13]

Simplified remote presentation. The issuer is not involved and learns nothing about the use.^[2][13]

Details: OpenID4VP verifier guide.

What German businesses must accept from the EUDI Wallet, and when

The duty is EU law. Under Article 5f(2) eIDAS, private relying parties required by law or contract to use strong user authentication for online identification must accept EUDI Wallets at the user's request by 24 December 2027. The sectors it names (transport, energy, banking, financial services, social security, health, drinking water, postal services, digital infrastructure, education and telecommunications) are examples. Micro and small enterprises are exempt.^[1]

Article 5f(2)Regulation (EU) No 910/2014 as amended by Regulation (EU) 2024/1183

"[...] those private relying parties shall, no later than 36 months from the date of entry into force of the implementing acts referred to in Article 5a(23) and Article 5c(6) and only upon the voluntary request of the user, also accept European Digital Identity Wallets"

Source: EUR-Lex, Regulation (EU) 2024/1183^[1]

Article 5f(3) also obliges very large online platforms to accept wallets, but it sets no deadline: the 24 December 2027 date comes from Article 5f(2) only.^[1] The German draft law covers national questions such as competent authorities, not a German deadline.^[5]

For banks, from 10 July 2027 Article 22(6) of the Anti-Money Laundering Regulation (AMLR, Regulation (EU) 2024/1624) allows verification with a document or with eID means at level substantial or high.^[10] Final draft standards of the Anti-Money Laundering Authority (AMLA), dated 30 September 2026, say eID means, wallets included, should be used wherever possible. They are a draft submitted to the Commission, not law; AMLA proposes they apply six months after entry into force.^[18] See the AMLR page.

What you receive, and what the wallet does not give you

Five identity attributes are mandatory in the PID, with issuer metadata (expiry date, issuing authority, issuing country); address, a personal administrative number and the portrait are optional, and the portrait becomes mandatory only on 11 August 2028.^[11] A relying party may request only what it registered, and the user can disclose part of a credential, such as "over 18", without the date of birth.^[1][2]

PID attributes from CIR 2024/2977 as amended, mapped to customer due diligence data.^[11]

Under Article 5a(15), wallet use is voluntary and access to public and private services must not be restricted or made disadvantageous to natural or legal persons that do not use one.^[1] The German FAQ adds that relying parties must offer alternative procedures.^[2]

How to prepare for the europäische digitale Identität in Germany

Every relying party registers in the Member State where it is established and declares the data it will request.^[1] In Germany an organisation registers in the EUDI ecosystem and, after identification, receives an access and registration certificate for the organisation and the use case, through what the FAQ calls the "EUDI Wallet Hub DE".^[2] Every organisation goes through sandbox onboarding, with test data only.^[2] The government puts total business costs at about EUR 13.5 million once and EUR 1.1 million a year; we found no registration fee (5 October 2026).^[5]

• Check with counsel whether Article 5f(2) applies to you.
• List the attributes each use case needs, and no more.
• Register through the German sandbox onboarding.
• Map PID attributes to your customer due diligence fields.
• Plan a source for address and other missing data.
• Keep a document route with chip reading and liveness.

More: EUDI Wallet relying party and German eID verification.

Identification routes in Germany at a glance

How Didit helps you get ready for the EUDI Wallet in Germany

EUDI Wallet acceptance is coming soon on Didit. So is the German eID card (Personalausweis), a separate route. In Germany today, Didit runs the document route with NFC chip reading, liveness and face match, plus AML screening, in one workflow. A full KYC check costs $0.33, NFC verification $0.15 and AML screening $0.20.

For customers from other countries, five national eIDs run in production through digital ID wallets: MitID, BankID Sweden, the Finnish Trust Network, Smart-ID and Mobile-ID. Only completed eID sign-ins are billed. Compare them on the eID verification page.

Frequently asked questions

Sources

1. Regulation (EU) 2024/1183 (eIDAS 2), EUR-Lex, Official Journal of 30 April 2024.
2. FAQ on the EUDI Wallet, German state EUDI Wallet project, read 5 October 2026.
3. d-you: Deutschland startet digitale Identität für alle, BMDS press release 53/2026, 9 September 2026.
4. EUDI-Wallet, Federal Ministry for Digital Affairs and State Modernisation (BMDS).
5. Rechtliche Voraussetzungen für die EUDI-Wallet beraten, Deutscher Bundestag, 23 September 2026.
6. § 18 PAuswG, Elektronischer Identitätsnachweis, gesetze-im-internet.de.
7. Overview of pre-notified and notified eID schemes under eIDAS, European Commission, read 5 October 2026.
8. eGovernment MONITOR 2025, Initiative D21 and TU München.
9. § 12 GwG, Identitätsüberprüfung, gesetze-im-internet.de.
10. Regulation (EU) 2024/1624 (AMLR), EUR-Lex, Official Journal of 19 June 2024.
11. Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2026/1731, EUR-Lex, 22 July 2026, with CIR 2024/2977.
12. § 21 PAuswG, Berechtigung für Diensteanbieter, gesetze-im-internet.de.
13. Architecture and Reference Framework v3.0.0, European Commission, 23 July 2026.
14. KJM bewertet vier weitere Altersverifikationssysteme positiv, Kommission für Jugendmedienschutz.
15. § 172 TKG, gesetze-im-internet.de.
16. Smarte eID: Online-Ausweis wegen Haushaltslage vorerst gestoppt, heise online, December 2023 (secondary source).
17. § 6a GlüStV 2021, BAYERN.RECHT (secondary source).
18. Final Report, draft RTS under Article 28(1) AMLR, AMLA, 30 September 2026.

See how businesses accept the wallet on the EUDI Wallet page, and compare every national eID in eID schemes by country and what eID verification is.