Piloting European Digital Identity Wallet
The EU is developing common legislation for European Digital Identity Wallet, and Finland is actively participating in this work. The underlying goal of European Digital Identity Wallet is to develop secure and reliable solutions for people to manage and use their information in the EU.
The eIDAS Regulation currently regulates cross-border electronic identification and trust services for electronic transactions and will continue to do so in the future. As part of the development of the European Digital Identity, the Commission launched the Digital Europe Programme call for proposals in 2022. The Digital Europe Programme aims to accelerate the cross-border piloting of European Digital Identity wallet applications relating to the amendments to the eIDAS Regulation.
In Finland, the cross-border piloting of wallet applications is part of the Digital Identity programme and the national preparation of the eIDAS amendment. The aim is to ensure that national wallet applications are compatible in cross-border transactions.
Pilot projects began in April 2023, and the Commission is providing no more than half of the funding for them. The Ministry of Finance is providing the other half of the funding, which is Finland’s national contribution. The European Commission and the Ministry of Finance are each providing about two million euros of funding for the pilots in 2023–2025.
Finland is participating in the three following projects (consortia):
- POTENTIAL consortium, led by France and Germany. Finland's key goal in this consortium is to pilot a mobile driving licence and eGovernment services. The responsible parties in Finland are the Ministry of Finance, the Digital and Population Data Services Agency and the Finnish Transport and Communications Agency.
- EWC consortium, led by Sweden. In this consortium, Finland is focusing on organisational digital identities and wallets and is cooperating with the Finnish Patent and Registration Office’s Real-Time Economy project. The Finnish authorities participating in the consortium are the Ministry of Finance, the Digital and Population Data Services Agency, the Finnish Patent and Registration Office, the Finnish Tax Administration and the State Treasury. The consortium also includes participants from the Finnish private sector: Finnair, Tietoevry and Findynet Cooperative.
- DC4EU consortium, led by Spain. Finland’s focus in this consortium is on piloting the use of higher education diplomas and student data in European Digital Identity wallets. The responsible parties in Finland are the Ministry of Finance, the Digital and Population Data Services Agency and the Finnish National Agency for Education.
The Ministry of Finance is coordinating the pilot projects, with several agencies cooperating in the practical work. The Digital and Population Data Services Agency is playing a key role in this work. Through the pilot projects, the Digital and Population Data Services Agency is supporting the preparation of European Digital Identity wallets in Finland and is identifying the roles and responsibilities relating to them. The Digital and Population Data Services Agency is also ensuring that wallet applications will be compatible with electronic identification services and trust services already in use in Finland.
Related links
Digital Europe Programme call for proposals
European Digital Identity Wallet pilots are Co-funded by the European Union. Views and opinions expressed are however those of Ministry of Finance Finland only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or the European Commission. Neither the European Union nor the granting authority can be held responsible for them.