Traveling just got a little bit easier for U.S. travelers. Google Wallet has launched its landmark feature that lets passengers create a digital ID in the form of a US Passport, promising to streamline, thereby making those notorious Airport lines a thing of history, but before you raise any hopes, here is more to know.
How does Google Wallet hold your passport and work?
That is the promise of Google’s new digital ID feature. Setting it up is surprisingly simple. Open the Google Wallet app, and you will find a prompt to create an ID pass with your U.S. passport. The process is quite straightforward, involving scanning the security chip embedded in your passport and taking a quick selfie video for identity verification. In just minutes, Google Wallet will let you know that your digital ID is ready to go.
But here’s the catch, this is not a full replacement for your physical passport. Google is crystal clear about this. The digital ID is currently limited to domestic flights and cannot be used for immigration or border control. It means you will still need to keep that physical passport in your travel bag.
That’s not the first innovation for Google. Digital IDs are also on the rise and are very popular across the entire United States nationwide. Already, 27 states, plus Puerto Rico, allow digital IDs through either Google Wallet, Apple Wallet, or both. These credentials are already accepted by most major airports, including New York’s JFK Airport, Los Angeles’s LAX, and San Francisco International Airport.
New break in airport technology
The rollout is slow but has already been rolled out to some users. Google does this cautiously, as it’s still in the very early stages, it says. So for now, the digital passport feature is just a supplement to the usual paper stuff, giving travelers just that extra bit of convenience while still not replacing it.
It’s not just passports that are getting a digital makeover. New Mexico has now become the sixth state in which residents are permitted to add their state driver’s licenses or IDs to Google Wallet. The trend of these new developments would seem to suggest we’re experiencing early glimpses into a far greater movement toward digital identification.
This speaks to many exciting use cases beyond airport security alone. Google sees a future for using digital IDs in account recovery, verification of identity, and even processes like renting cars. It’s a vision into the future where your smartphone is becoming an increasingly powerful tool in managing personal identification.
What does it mean for travelers For now, the message is that digital is convenient but not comprehensive yet. The physical ID and passports would have to be carried while traveling. Digital will just become another added tool for this process rather than being used to replace everything in one go.
Further advancements of technology would enable full-fledged integration with maximum acceptance. The bottom line? It is making travel smoother; one digital ID at a time. Again, of course, we don’t seem to have advanced to that stage where no physical carry is required Google Wallet’s new thing is going surely in this exciting direction.
