Georgia Digital License: Setup, Traffic Stops, and TSA Use

The Georgia digital driver’s license is a free, optional version of your state license that lives in Apple Wallet, Google Wallet, or Samsung Wallet on your phone or Apple Watch. You can use it at more than 250 TSA checkpoints, at participating retailers for age-restricted purchases, and, as of July 1, 2025, at Georgia traffic stops where the officer has a compatible reader. One rule catches most people off guard: state law still requires you to carry your physical plastic license whenever you drive, so the digital version is a supplement, not a replacement.¹

What It Is and What It Is Not

Officially called the Georgia Digital Driver’s License and ID, the credential is an encrypted, cryptographically signed copy of your physical license issued at no cost by the Georgia Department of Driver Services. It carries the same photo, name, date of birth, and license number as your plastic card, and a reader can verify that DDS issued it and that no one has changed the data.²

It is not a standalone substitute for the plastic card. Under O.C.G.A. § 40-5-29, every driver must have a physical license in their immediate possession while operating a motor vehicle, and law enforcement can demand to see it in hard-card or paper temporary form. Leaving the plastic at home because your phone has the digital version can still result in a citation.¹

How to Set It Up

You need a current, valid Georgia driver’s license or state-issued ID card. If your physical license is suspended, revoked, or expired, DDS will reject the request. The service works on iPhone 8 or newer (Apple Wallet), Android 8.0 or higher (Google Wallet), and Samsung Wallet.²

Apple Wallet

Open Apple Wallet, tap the “+” button, select “Driver License or State ID,” and choose Georgia. Scan the front and back of your physical card, then take a selfie so DDS can match your face against the card photo. Once DDS approves the submission, the license appears in your wallet.³

Google Wallet

Open Google Wallet, tap “Add to Wallet,” select “ID Card,” and choose Georgia. Scan both sides of your license and complete a facial recognition check. Your device must have an active screen lock (fingerprint, PIN, or pattern) before Google Wallet will hold the credential.⁴

Samsung Wallet

Open Samsung Wallet, tap “Add,” then “Digital IDs.” Scan the front and back of your card, complete the face scan, and wait for DDS verification. The flow mirrors the Apple and Google process.⁵

DDS has not published a guaranteed turnaround for approval. Give yourself a few days before any trip where you plan to use the digital ID at a TSA checkpoint.

Where You Can Use It

TSA Checkpoints

The Transportation Security Administration accepts Georgia’s digital license at more than 250 checkpoints nationwide. Hold your phone or Apple Watch near the Credential Authentication Technology reader at the document podium; you don’t hand the device to the officer. Georgia holds a federal waiver that allows its mobile license to be used for official federal purposes, including boarding domestic flights, provided the underlying physical license is REAL ID-compliant.⁶

Not every checkpoint has the right reader yet, though the list keeps growing. TSA maintains a current one at tsa.gov/digital-id and encourages travelers to carry a physical ID as a backup.⁷

Age-Restricted Purchases

Georgia’s Department of Revenue Alcohol and Tobacco Division has confirmed that mobile driver’s licenses are a valid form of ID for age-restricted purchases at participating retailers. Liquor stores, bars, and tobacco retailers can use it to verify a customer’s age.⁸ Businesses are not required to accept it. If a cashier asks for the plastic card, that’s within their rights.

Banks

Some Georgia banks and credit unions accept the digital license for identity verification, but adoption is uneven. Many financial institutions have strict “know your customer” protocols and may not have systems that can authenticate a mobile credential. Bring your physical ID for banking until your specific institution says otherwise.

Where It Is Not Accepted

Georgia’s voter ID requirements list several acceptable photo IDs, including a Georgia driver’s license (even if expired), but the Secretary of State’s office does not include the digital version on that list. Bring the physical card or another approved photo ID to the polls.⁹

Federal buildings, military installations, and nuclear facilities that require REAL ID-compliant credentials may not have reader technology installed, even though Georgia holds a federal waiver. Out-of-state acceptance is also spotty. The digital license follows an international interoperability standard (ISO/IEC 18013-5), but whether a business, agency, or officer in another state can read it depends on their equipment and policies.¹⁰ Outside of TSA checkpoints, treat the digital license as a convenience that may or may not work across state lines.

Traffic Stops Under HB 296

House Bill 296 took effect on July 1, 2025 and changed how a digital license works at a Georgia traffic stop. The rollout has two phases:

From July 1, 2025 through June 30, 2027, an officer who has a digital license reader must accept your mobile credential. If they don’t have one, you need to show a physical license.
Starting July 1, 2027, all Georgia law enforcement agencies must have readers capable of verifying digital licenses.

The practical gap matters during the transition. Smaller departments may not have the equipment yet, and a dead phone leaves you with nothing to show. Carrying your plastic license through this window is both legally required and the only way to guarantee you can produce identification at any stop.¹

HB 296 also protects your phone during a stop. An officer cannot require you to hand it over. The digital license shares only what’s needed (age, license validity, name), and the law blocks officers from scrolling through your phone or accessing anything beyond the license data.

Security, Lost Phones, and New Devices

The digital license sits behind your device’s biometric lock (Face ID or fingerprint) or passcode, and the wallet app requires its own authentication before presenting the credential. Someone who picks up your unlocked phone can’t just open the wallet and use it. If your phone is lost or stolen, use Find My iPhone or Find My Device to wipe it remotely, which removes the digital license along with everything else.

The credential doesn’t transfer between devices. When you upgrade phones, remove the digital license from the old device first, then run through the full enrollment on the new one, including a fresh scan of the physical card and a new facial recognition check.³

REAL ID and Air Travel

REAL ID enforcement began on May 7, 2025. You now need a REAL ID-compliant license or another acceptable federal ID to board a domestic commercial flight, enter most federal buildings, or access certain restricted facilities.¹¹ All Georgia licenses issued after 2012 are REAL ID-compliant and carry a gold or black star in the upper right corner.¹²

Your digital license can be REAL ID-compliant, and you can hold a compliant physical card and a compliant digital version at the same time. Federal acceptance of the digital version only happens where the right reader exists, which for now mostly means TSA checkpoints. A federal building’s front desk probably won’t have a compatible scanner, so bring the plastic card.⁶

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Georgia Department of Driver Services. GA Digital Driver’s License and ID
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Georgia Department of Driver Services. GA Digital ID
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Georgia Department of Driver Services. GA Digital Driver’s License for iPhone and Apple Watch FAQs
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Georgia Department of Driver Services. Digital ID in Google Wallet FAQs, Terms and Conditions
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Georgia Department of Driver Services. Add My Georgia Digital License and ID to Samsung Wallet
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Transportation Security Administration. REAL ID Mobile Driver’s Licenses (mDLs)
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Transportation Security Administration. Participating States and Eligible Digital IDs
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Georgia Department of Driver Services. Digital Driver’s Licenses Can Now Be Accepted for Age-Restricted Purchases at Participating Retail Locations
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Georgia Secretary of State. Georgia Voter Identification Requirements
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Federal Register. Minimum Standards for Driver’s Licenses and Identification Cards Acceptable by Federal Agencies for Official Purposes; Waiver for Mobile Driver’s Licenses
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Transportation Security Administration. TSA to Highlight REAL ID Enforcement Deadline of May 7, 2025
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Georgia Department of Driver Services. REAL ID – Georgia REAL ID Information