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Which EU country has the most advanced digital ID wallet?
Executive summary
Belgium, several Nordic countries and France are repeatedly cited as early movers in EU digital ID wallet deployment, with Belgium described as having “a head start” for making a wallet generally available [1], while France and the Nordics are forecast to drive early uptake [2]. The European Commission’s EUDI Wallet pilots and implementing acts set mandatory timetables — member states must make at least one wallet available by end‑2026 and private services must accept it from 2027 — which reframes “most advanced” as a mix of readiness, scale and certified compliance with eIDAS 2.0 [3] [4] [5].
1. What “most advanced” means in this race
“Most advanced” can mean at least three things: a publicly available national wallet, high user uptake (scale), and conformity with the new eIDAS 2.0 implementing rules that will govern certification and interoperability. The European Commission requires member states to provide at least one EUDI wallet by December 2026 and for services to accept it from 2027, making certification and alignment with the Commission’s technical framework central to any claim of leadership [4] [5]. Available sources do not define a single objective metric for “most advanced,” so assessments draw on different indicators such as launch timing, pilot scope, issuance volumes, and political or financial backing [6] [3].
2. Belgium: the early public rollout claim
Multiple outlets note Belgium “has a head start” and launched a digital wallet earlier in the EUDI timeline, which is why it is frequently singled out as an early mover [1]. That status is reported in the context of national pilots and early availability rather than formal EU certification; Belgium’s advantage is described as practical lead time in making a wallet generally available to citizens [1]. The Commission’s broader pilot ecosystem and its prototype work also complement national efforts, so Belgium’s head start must be seen as one national example inside a continent‑wide program [6].
3. France and the Nordics: momentum and scale forecasts
Analysts project that France and Nordic countries will “drive most of the early uptake” and together represent significant volume in expected wallet adoption — ABI Research forecasted tens of millions of wallets circulating in 2025 and 2026, with France and the Nordics prominent among early adopters [2]. This view emphasizes expected user rollout and market momentum rather than formal certification status. Forecasts provide useful context for scale but are predictive, not definitive measurements of current technical or regulatory compliance [2].
4. Austria and mobile driving licences as a capability indicator
One way sources mark “advanced” is by counting large‑scale credential issuance tied to wallets, such as mobile driving licences (mDLs). The European Commission and reporting note Austria had issued more than 800,000 mDLs, which the Biometric Update piece highlights as making Austria “well ahead of most EU countries in that regard” [7]. High-volume issuance of specific digital documents can indicate operational maturity in certain use cases even if a full EUDI Wallet ecosystem is still under development.
5. European Commission cadence and why national leadership is bounded
The EU’s implementing acts and the Commission’s funding and prototype work set the rules of the road: implementing regulations, conformity‑assessment rules, and risk policies will shape which national wallets are officially “compliant” [3] [8]. The Commission also earmarked funding and pilots to accelerate certification and rollout, signalling that national early wins must align with EU certification to be broadly interoperable [9] [7]. Thus, national “firsts” like Belgium’s public availability matter practically but do not automatically equal continental leadership if they lack conformity with forthcoming EU implementing acts [3] [8].
6. Caveats, disagreements and reporting gaps
Reporting frames different leaders depending on the metric: Belgium for early availability [1], France/Nordics for projected uptake [2], and Austria for a concrete high‑volume mDL rollout [7]. Sources do not provide a single, authoritative ranking of “most advanced” according to combined technical, regulatory and adoption measures; available sources do not mention a consolidated leaderboard certified under eIDAS 2.0 (not found in current reporting). The Commission’s pilots involve hundreds of stakeholders across many member states, and several sources stress that the landscape remains in flux as member states prepare for the end‑2026 deadline [4] [6].
7. What to watch next (short list)
Watch three datapoints to update any judgment on “most advanced”: formal eIDAS 2.0 certifications and implementing‑act conformity for national wallets; large‑scale user uptake figures (wallet installations/active users); and cross‑border acceptance by public and private services once firms are required to accept wallets from 2027. The Commission’s ongoing pilots, prototype releases and funding calls will shape which national solutions scale and interoperate across the EU [6] [9] [4].
Summary: Belgium, France/the Nordics and Austria each lead on different fronts — early public availability, projected uptake, and issuance volume respectively — but the EU’s certification and interoperability rules will be the decisive yardstick for claiming the “most advanced” digital ID wallet across the bloc [1] [2] [7] [3].