Leave your wallet at home; everything you need is now on your smartphone. Your ID card, driver's license, bank card, health insurance card, travel tickets, loyalty cards, discount coupons, and meal vouchers all come in digital format. And others are likely to follow soon.
Government, banks, retailers, and municipalities have been working for years to dematerialize the countless cards that take up so much space in our wallets. So much so that today, it is entirely possible to leave home with a simple smartphone, which allows you to prove your identity and access many services. We offer you a brief summary of all the cards that are now accessible from a mobile device. Eventually, other documents will be able to be imported on mobile, with the European Commission aiming to create a true European digital identity wallet.
How to dematerialize your cards?
In most cases, you just need an Android smartphone or an iPhone compatible with NFC technology (almost all models released recently) to be able to dematerialize your various cards. For official documents, you must use the France Identité application, available on Android from version 8 (Oreo) and on iPhone from iOS 16. France Identité is only valid for adults, and holders of the new identity card, distributed since 2021 in bank card format.
Why dematerialize your cards?
The objectives of dematerializing cards are multiple. The most obvious is that it is more practical to store all your data on a smartphone rather than constantly carrying all your documents. This system also helps limit the theft or loss of physical cards.
In the case of identity documents, dematerialization saves time during checks by law enforcement or verification by a private organization (for car rental, for example). It also makes it possible to carry out certain procedures without disclosing all your data and to combat fraud.
1. The driving license
You can integrate your driving license, regardless of its format (pink three-part or bank card), into the France Identité app. The digital driving license is valid during a road check carried out on national territory. Soon, it will also be possible to integrate driving license data into proof of driving rights to facilitate online procedures and vehicle rentals.
Note that if you still have the pink cardboard 3-part license, you no longer need to wait until its validity expires to exchange it for the “bank card” format. You can have it replaced free of charge.
To present your driver's license, simply open your France Identité app and select the option "Present your driver's license". The user is then informed of the data that will be transferred and must give their consent to continue. The transfer of information is carried out via NFC by placing their phone on that of the person they are talking to, who can then verify the data transmitted to them.
To import your driver's license into France Identité, you must:
- Install the France Identité app on your smartphone if you haven't already done so
- Go to the web platform “My Permit Points” from another screen and log in to your account
- In the “My Documents” tab, download your Restricted Information Statement (RIR)
- From the France Identity app on your mobile, scan the QR Code of your RIR
- Follow the instructions to finalize the import of your digital driving license into France Identity
2. The identity card
It is possible to prove your identity by importing your identity card onto France Connect. This step is also necessary to be able to carry out procedures in the application and benefit from additional features. Please note that only the new generation identity card, in bank card format and with a chip, is compatible with France Connect.
If you still have an older version, you must renew it to obtain the latest version. You can do this for free even if the document is still valid, as with a driver's license.
The digital identity card allows you to validate your identity online, but can also be presented to a physical person for verification. However, while it is valid with law enforcement officials, few services currently accept it due to a lack of equipment. The SNCF is starting to do this on some trains as a test, but for now, you still need to have your physical ID card with you when you take the train.
In around fifty municipalities, it was possible to vote by proxy in the June 2024 European elections using this method. The system will be extended to the 2026 municipal elections.
Once this is done, you will be able to carry out various procedures online and generate a single-use proof of identity. One of the advantages of the digital ID card is that it only shows the information needed in a given situation. Proving your age in order to benefit from a discount does not require sharing all of your identity data, for example.
To import your National Identity Card (CNI) into France Identité, follow these steps:
- Install the France Identité app on your smartphone if you haven't already done so
- Tap Register or Log In
- Accept the terms and conditions of use and authorize the app to access your camera
- Scan your ID card by following the on-screen instructions
- Launch the contactless reading of your CNI to establish communication with the document's NFC chip
- Follow the France Connect authentication procedure, enter an email address and choose your 6-digit personal code
- Your digital CNI is ready to use and you can access all of France Identité's functions
3. The insurance certificate
The green car insurance sticker is no longer mandatory on windshields since April 1, 2024. Being insured is still necessary, of course, but physical proof that you are covered has become optional. Again, the digital version of this document can be found in the France Identité app.
By showing your smartphone to the police, officers can access your insurance data stored in the Insured Vehicle File (FVA), which contains the insurer's name, vehicle registration, insurance contract number, and its validity period.
4. The Vitale card (in testing)
Still in the testing phase, the digital Vitale card is available in the following departments:
- Ain (01)
- Allier (03)
- Alpes-de-Haute-Provence (04)
- Alpes-Maritimes (06)
- Ardèche (07)
- Bas-Rhin (67)
- Bouches-du-Rhône (13)
- Cantal (15)
- Drome (26)
- Hautes-Alpes (05)
- Haute-Loire (43)
- Haute-Savoie (74)
- Isère (38)
- Loire (42)
- Loire-Atlantique (44)
- Puy-de-Dôme (63)
- Rhône (69)
- Saône-et-Loire (71)
- Sarthe (72)
- Savoie (73)
- Seine-Maritime (76)
- Var (83)
- Vaucluse (84)
It should soon be rolled out to the rest of the country if the experiment is successful. It is not currently part of the France Connect ecosystem and you must use a dedicated application to benefit from it. In the first quarter of 2025, it should be integrated into the France Identité application. This is, in any case, the Prime Minister's wish.
The Carte Vitale application should streamline relations between healthcare professionals and policyholders. It can be presented to doctors as well as pharmacists, but note that not all of them are necessarily equipped to handle it. It can work with NFC technology, but also with a simple QR code to scan.
One advantage of this app is that it allows you to download your healthcare expense receipts and facilitate tracking. The French Health Insurance Agency has announced that it is working on developing two new features:
- Delegate the use of the Vitale card to a trusted person for a specific period of time (for grandparents who look after children, for example)
- Securely log in to other digital health services
To obtain your Vitale card on your smartphone, you must:
- Install the Vitale card application on your device
- Accept the general conditions of use
- Scan your Vitale card to read your social security number, or enter it manually
- Scan your ID or enter the information manually
- Wait for validation from the Health Insurance Agency to activate your digital Vitale card
5. The bank card
Already adopted by many French people, the bank card stored on the smartphone is very practical on a daily basis for paying contactless with your smartphone rather than with a debit or credit card. Unlike the bank card, it is possible to pay contactless via mobile an amount greater than 50 euros without having to enter your PIN. By 2024, the vast majority of merchants will accept this payment method.
To use mobile contactless payment, your bank must be compatible with one of the dedicated applications on the market: Apple Pay, Samsung Pay, Google Pay, Paylib… Your smartphone must also be equipped with an NFC chip. You also have the freedom to configure payment with a compatible smartwatch to avoid having to take your smartphone out of your pocket or bag.
The procedure for paying with your smartphone varies depending on the service used. From your bank's mobile app or website, look for the option to add your card to the mobile payment tool of your choice, choose the payment platform that interests you and follow the instructions. Here is an example with Google Wallet:
- Open the Google Wallet app and tap “Add to Wallet” at the bottom of the screen.
- Tap Payment Card and then New Credit or Debit Card.
- To add a card, use your camera or enter the information manually.
- At the bottom of the screen, tap Save and Continue.
- Read the terms of use and then tap Accept.
- If you are asked to confirm your payment method, choose an option from the list: phone, SMS, email, your bank's app or website, temporary transfer, etc.
6. Transport tickets
While contactless payment by smartphone for a single-trip transport ticket has become widely available in French cities, the handling of subscriptions by transport networks is another matter. Support for such an offer varies by city. In Paris, a smartphone can replace the famous Navigo Pass via the Île-de-France Mobilités app to validate entry and exit. The app also allows you to purchase tickets or top up a subscription. Alternatively, you can also store your transport tickets in the form of a scannable QR code. For train use, the SNCF Connect app allows you to display your ticket. Airlines with a dedicated app are normally also able to generate a QR code to scan your ticket. Another option is to download the code and then save it in the Wallet app you usually use.
7. Meal vouchers
We've had checks, then cards, and now meal vouchers are available in a digital form. Here, you have two options. You can access your meal vouchers directly from the dedicated application of the platform your company uses: Edenred, Sodexo, Bimpli, etc. For greater convenience, you can also import your meal voucher card into your usual contactless payment application.
8. Loyalty cards
You can also store your dozens of loyalty cards on your smartphone. There are wallet applications dedicated to loyalty cards, but you can also save them to services like Google Wallet. In an instant, you get the barcode of your loyalty card on your smartphone screen, which the merchant can then scan.
9. Discount Coupons
Traditional wallet apps offer the ability to store certain discount coupons or gift cards. There are also a multitude of apps specializing in discount coupons, which you can scan at the checkout: Shopmium, Coupon Network, Quoty, etc.
10. The registration card (coming soon)
The government has already mentioned the upcoming dematerialization of the registration card via the France Identité platform. If it meets its objective, this should be possible for the 2025 summer holidays, around July 5.
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