Sweden to launch government eID in December 2026

Sweden has announced that its electronic identity (e-ID) will be launched on December 1st, 2026, giving both Swedish citizens and foreign residents a government alternative to the popular BankID, a digital identity service developed by Swedish banks.

The Sverige-ID will allow users to identify themselves, share information and provide e-signatures. The e-ID will also allow access to other EU countries’ digital services, the government announced on Tuesday.

The e-ID will enable the highest trust level according to EU regulation, bringing it up to date with guidelines for the EU Digital Identity (EUDI) Wallet. Currently, no Swedish e-ID provides this trust level.

The e-ID is currently being developed by the Police Authority in collaboration with the Agency for Digital Government (Digg), under the Ministry of Finance. Digg is responsible for Sweden’s implementation of the eIDAS regulation and maintains Sweden Connect, which includes the Swedish eIDAS node, the technical framework and the general register for secure e-ID transactions.

The police note that the national ID card can only be linked to Sverige-ID on December 1st, when the Act on Government Electronic Identification will come into force. National ID cards issued before December 1st cannot be used for Sverige-ID.

The e-ID will be linked to two different types of ID cards: The national ID card for Swedish citizens and a special ID card for registered residents. To obtain an e-ID, the ID card application must be submitted at the same time.

Work on the e-ID started last year. The Police Authority received a 2025 budget of 40 million Swedish kronor (US$4.3 million) for the task.

More than 8.7 million Swedes already use BankID, achieving a penetration rate of 99.7 percent. The platform offers approximately 7,500 services and has been expanding across Scandinavia.

Article Topics

digital ID  |  e-ID  |  electronic-signature  |  identity management  |  national ID  |  Sverige-ID  |  Sweden