Overview
- Digital Minister Karsten Wildberger announced a 2 January 2027 debut for a mobile “digital wallet” carrying ID card, driver’s license, vehicle registration and insurance cards, with additional documents added quarterly.
- He said the wallet will meet high security standards and enable everyday uses such as opening bank accounts, signing mobile contracts and proving age for purchases.
- Wildberger outlined a strategy that leans on artificial intelligence, borrows proven models from countries like Estonia and Greece, and targets faster fiber rollout to the last mile and the closure of mobile coverage white spots.
- He described six major state-modernization projects in progress yet provided no firm dates for several core services, including a digital tax return, acknowledging the complexity of standardizing thousands of variants across authorities.
- On governance, he noted the federal IT service ITZ-Bund remains under the Finance Ministry, asserted he has and has used an IT veto in cabinet, and faced media criticism over fragmented responsibilities and a perceived mentality problem slowing delivery.