iPhone Driver's License Support Expands to More Californians

iPhone users in California can now add their digital driver's licenses and IDs in the Apple Wallet app on ‌iPhone‌ and Apple Watch, with California expanding an ongoing test of the digital license feature.

apple california drivers license
Several MacRumors readers have reported seeing the California license as an option in the Wallet app, under the label "California mDL Pilot." Prior to now, only a limited number of people were seeing the option.

Wallet app integration is part of California's mobile driver's license effort, which kicked off a year ago. More than 500,000 people have already added a driver's license or ID to the California DMV Wallet app, where California tested the option before starting to roll it out to the Wallet app.

Apple announced California's Wallet license plans back in August, and said that it was working with California to bring IDs to Apple Wallet.

"We're excited to be working with the state of California to bring IDs in Apple Wallet to Apple's home state soon, and provide residents with an easy, secure, and private way to present their California driver's license and state ID in person and in app using Apple Wallet," said Jennifer Bailey, Apple's vice president of Apple Pay and Apple Wallet. "Whether using IDs in Apple Wallet to breeze through travel, or to securely verify age or identity at businesses, California driver's licenses and state IDs in Apple Wallet make ID presentment seamless - all with the security built into iPhone and Apple Watch."

IDs and licenses stored in the Wallet app on ‌iPhone‌ or iPad can be used for TSA screenings at select airports (including SFO, LAX, and SJC) and for age verification at select stores. Right now, California's mobile wallet support is still in an early stage, and only 1.5 million participants are able to sign up.


California requires people to continue to carry a physical license or ID card because the digital license is not accepted by law enforcement, state government agencies, and most businesses.

Apple announced a new Wallet app that supported digital IDs back in 2022, but states have been slow to adopt the feature. So far, only Arizona, Colorado, Georgia, Maryland, Hawaii, and Ohio have implemented support. Apple said in 2022 that Connecticut, Iowa, Kentucky, Oklahoma, and Utah are working on support, and today added that Montana, New Mexico, and West Virginia also plan to adopt the functionality.

Popular Stories

iPhone 17 Pro Render Front Page Tech

iPhone 17 Pro Launching Later This Year With These 10 New Features

Sunday March 23, 2025 10:00 am PDT by
While the iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max are not expected to launch until September, there are already plenty of rumors about the devices. iPhone 17 Pro's alleged design via Front Page Tech Below, we recap key changes rumored for the iPhone 17 Pro models as of March 2025: Aluminum frame: iPhone 17 Pro models are rumored to have an aluminum frame, whereas the iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone...
iCloud General Feature Redux

iPhone Users Who Pay for iCloud Storage Receive a New Perk

Thursday March 20, 2025 12:01 am PDT by
If you pay for iCloud storage on your iPhone, Apple has a new perk for you, at no additional cost. The new perk is the ability to create invitations in the Apple Invites app for the iPhone, which launched in the App Store last month. In the Apple Invites app, iCloud+ subscribers can create invitations for any occasion, such as birthday parties, graduations, baby showers, and more. Anyone ...
iOS 18

Top 5 New Features Coming in iOS 18.4

Friday March 21, 2025 3:26 pm PDT by
We're not getting new Siri Apple Intelligence features in iOS 18.4 as expected, but the upcoming update does have quite a few new additions that will be worth upgrading for. We've rounded up the five best features to look forward to, and if you're not running the beta, you can expect to get access to these in early April. Priority Notifications If you have an iPhone or iPad that supports...
Generic iOS 19 Feature Mock

iOS 19 Coming in June With These New Features

Thursday March 20, 2025 2:04 pm PDT by
While the first iOS 19 beta is still more than two months away, there are already plenty of rumors about the upcoming software update. Below, we recap the key iOS 19 rumors so far. visionOS-Like Design In January, the YouTube channel Front Page Tech revealed a redesigned Camera app that is allegedly planned for iOS 19. According to Front Page Tech host Jon Prosser, the Camera app...
Generic iOS 18

Apple Seeds iOS 18.4 and iPadOS 18.4 Release Candidate With Priority Notifications, Ambient Music and More

Monday March 24, 2025 10:07 am PDT by
Apple today seeded the release candidate versions of upcoming iOS 18.4 and iPadOS 18.4 updates to developers for testing purposes, with the software coming a week after Apple released the fourth betas. iOS 18.4 and iPadOS 18.4 can be downloaded from the Settings app on a compatible device by going to General > Software Update. With iOS 18.4, Apple is adding the Priority Notifications...
airpods max 2024 colors

Don't Buy Into Apple's Hype About AirPods Max Gaining Lossless Audio

Monday March 24, 2025 4:24 pm PDT by
Apple today announced that AirPods Max with a USB-C port will be gaining support for lossless audio and ultra-low latency audio with a firmware update next month, alongside the release of iOS 18.4, iPadOS 18.4, and macOS 15.4. For context, audio files are typically compressed to keep file sizes smaller. There are lossy compression standards like MP3, and Apple's own Advanced Audio Codec...
Foldable iPhone 2023 Feature Iridescent Search

Foldable iPhone Expected to Launch Next Year, Costing Around $2,000

Monday March 24, 2025 3:43 am PDT by
Apple will launch its long-rumored foldable iPhone next year with a ~$2,000 premium price tag attached, expects well-connected Bloomberg reporter Mark Gurman. Gurman's comments on Apple's launch plans for its first foldable device appeared in the Q&A section of his latest Power On newsletter. Earlier this month, the reporter said Apple's foldable iPhone could be arriving "as early as 2026,"...
iOS 19 Rounded UI Elements Light

iOS 19: What to Expect From Apple's Dramatic Design Overhaul?

Monday March 24, 2025 9:47 am PDT by
Earlier this month, Bloomberg reported that Apple is planning "one of the most dramatic software overhauls in the company's history" – an update that aims to bring iOS, iPadOS, and macOS into closer visual alignment. The redesign is said to be "loosely based" on visionOS, the software behind Apple's Vision Pro headset, and will reportedly update the look of icons, menus, apps, windows, and...

Top Rated Comments

gtmead09 Avatar
27 weeks ago
My state will be 51st out of 50 states........
Score: 8 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Amazing Iceman Avatar
27 weeks ago
Good for you guys in California. In the meantime, Florida is playing with some dumb alternative because Tallahassee wants to be different and decided not to adopt it.
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)
JohnC1959 Avatar
27 weeks ago
I have the AZ digital license, but I still need to carry the physical one so no real advantage. But maybe some day....
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)
kinless Avatar
27 weeks ago
Cool, thanks for letting me know! Just went through the process to get mine uploaded.

EDIT: Aaaand... it just came back rejected lol. Guess their system isn't quite ready yet?

EDIT #2: Second attempt seemed to work, but then got an email saying they needed more verification to scan on DMV's website like Passport ID, etc. which I don't have with me right now so will have to wait. What a pain in the @$$.

EDIT #3 the next day: Had to request a new link but uploaded my passport ID photo / info and was almost immediately accepted. CA ID is now in Wallet. Thought the image would be a little more exciting but it's just full name with a boring beige/blue gradient. Maybe they'll update that later.
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
ethanwa79 Avatar
27 weeks ago
This is great news because the population of the state is so large, so hopefully this will be the push digital ID’s need to start getting more mass adoption. Hoping more states follow suit soon.
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
california_kid Avatar
27 weeks ago
Tried to add, when thru scan and a strange sequence of taking photos of my face, eyes closed, turning my head, opening my mouth (yes WTF is that for?) then said processing. Then told can't do it right now.

All this to try to add to my Apple Wallet instead of using mDL app which already has my digital drivers license.

On the later, I tried using it at a local restaurant that gives 10% discount if you show a local driver's license. They wouldn't accept mDL stating "I have no idea what that is".

Update - Got an email from the DMV saying verification failed try again. What, didn't open my mouth wide enough?
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)