CA DMV Wallet

California Department of Motor Vehicles

About this app

Now live in Pilot Phase – California DMV Mobile Wallet
Californians now have a secure way to present their driver’s license or identification card using their smartphones via a Mobile Driver’s License (mDL) digital credential.

California DMV Wallet gives you the control of the driver’s license data you share with others. For example, when buying age-restricted items, the app can confirm you are of legal age without having to share your birth date or address.

With mDL in your CA DMV Wallet, you can breeze through the TSA queue at the airports using your phone. You can also enroll in the TruAge program via the Wallet Marketplace to purchase age-verified products at a corner store near you (starting with select pilot locations in California and expanding nationally). The Wallet will soon be supporting online identity verification for government and commercial applications.

Designed with California's diverse population in mind, the CA DMV Wallet open-source platform uses state-of-the-art encryption algorithms and security technologies to combat fraud and reduce identity theft while improving privacy, transparency, and access for all Californians with a smartphone.

Important note: While the mDL can be used as an official state-issued ID, per the pilot scope approved by the California legislature, you must still have a physical driver’s license or identification card with you.

For more information, please visit: https://www.dmv.ca.gov/portal/ca-dmv-wallet/

California DMV Wallet is free, easy, secure, and convenient

Ratings and reviews

Actually works. The state is catching up with the private sector a bit. 💪 For reviewers saying that it freezes, hit the back button and you're good. Be sure to use an email address you have access to and be ready to have your photo taken (though it won't put your photo on the app) it uses it for verification. Creating account opens browser and shuts you out of the app so log back in to finish. Annoying but shouldn't disrupt the savvy. Video tutorial would help folks.

Annoying that you need to manually refresh every few weeks; that's something that should occur automatically in the background. This isn't the type of app you open every day (at least right now)... what happens when you actually need to use it and you're in an area with no coverage. Separately, it would be even better if we didn't need to install an extra app at all. Google Wallet and Apple both support mobile licenses - CA should work towards integrating with them.

App keeps freezing right after I unlock it using biometrics (thumb print), and when I do get through, any action I try to execute/click through leads to a blank frozen screen. I had high hopes for this app to mitigate carrying my ID and/or DMV services. Hope they fix/update soon. For reference, I have a Samsung Galaxy 22.

What's new

Added general usability updates and user experience improvements