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eIDAS, the EU regulation governing digital identity

From October 9 to 10, 2025 we met in Issy-Les-Moulineaux for our annual conference. During the last session of the conference we had the opportunity to explain the relevance of the eIDAS (1) EU regulation. We  proposed to establish a new Special Interest Group- SIG (2) dedicated to eIDAS and we encouraged participation in that SIG.

The webinar has been coordinated  by Stephan Klein, member of the Executive Committee of MCE, GM of Governikus, and representing the City State of Bremen.

Agenda:

  1. Welcome (Stephan Klein)
  2. Introduction of Participants (All)
    • Name, Job, Organisation / City / Region
    • Touch points with eIDAS
  3. The eIDAS Regulation in short (Stephan Klein)
  4. City of Dresden: EU DI Wallet project
  5. City of Prato
  6. The eIDAS Special Interest Group (All)

We have explained what eIDAS is all about and why it is relevant for EU Local Governments (3). The participants showed great interest in being part of the newly planned Special Interest Group of MCE on eIDAS. The action plan will follow

(1), (2), (3)  Background information

(1) eIDAS, what is it? eIDAS is the EU regulation governing digital identity. Originally adopted in 2014, its 2024 update introduced a digital identity wallet that lets citizens store their digital personal identity (e.g., based on their ID card or passport). The real value of the wallet comes when it also stores official documents issued by authorities. These documents must be verifiable: whenever someone presents a document, the receiving party should be able to check its authenticity online with the issuing authority. Local authorities must make relevant attributes (data about the person) accessible to the wallet and ensure their accuracy when they’re accessed.

(2) What is a Special Interest Group (SIG)? A SIG within MCE is a focused working group that brings together members from different local governments who share a common interest in a specific topic related for instance to urban innovation, digital transformation, or smart city development. SIGs are designed to: facilitate collaboration, exchange best practices and experiences, develop shared insights or outputs,

(3) What Challenges Lie Ahead for Local Governments? eIDAS will bring significant new challenges for local authorities. While technical standards will be developed in line with the European legal framework—and various solutions will become available—it is essential that we first fully understand these changes. Under the eIDAS Regulation, EU member states are required to provide every citizen with a digital wallet by November 2026. Thanks to the SIG, regular exchange and collaboration will be the most effective way to achieve eIDAS understanding.