Digital Identity Legislation Position Paper

Sections of the Position Paper

  1. 1 Introduction
  2. 2 Glossary of terms
  3. 3 Purpose of the Digital Identity Legislation
  4. 4 Structure of the Digital Identity Legislation
  5. 5 Scope of the Digital Identity Legislation
  6. 6 Governance of the Digital Identity system
  7. 7 Privacy and consumer safeguards
  8. 8 Trustmarks
  9. 9 Liability and redress framework
  10. 10 Penalties and enforcement
  11. 11 Administration of charges for the Digital Identity system
  12. 12 What we will do with your feedback
  13. 13 Have your say

1 Introduction

The Digital Identity system is a simple, safe and secure way for Australians to verify their identity online. With millions of people already using Digital Identity to access over 75 government services, Digital Identity is transforming the way Australians and Australian businesses engage with government services. The Australian Government is committed to rolling out a whole-of-economy Digital Identity system to:

  • enable Australians to prove who they are online and reduce the administrative burden for small and medium businesses, so they can get on with doing business
  • support an increased number of Australians to transact end-to-end digitally, improve privacy and accessibility, and reduce fraud
  • enable innovative digital sectors of the economy to flourish.

To facilitate this expansion, the Digital Transformation Agency (DTA) is currently undertaking community consultation on the development of Trusted Digital Identity Legislation.

The Legislation will help expand the Australian Government's Digital Identity system into a whole-of-economy Digital Identity solution by establishing robust governance, as well as strengthening data and consumer protections. The Legislation will also allow entities in other digital identity systems to apply for TDIF accreditation (the TDIF accreditation scheme).

The Bill is proposed to be introduced into the Parliament in late 2021.

Phase 1 of the consultation has involved the public release of a detailed consultation paper, seeking stakeholder views on the scope and content of the Digital Identity Legislation.

This resulted in a diverse array of submissions from a range of Australians and Australian businesses. The response to this initial phase of consultation has been positive – with support for the expansion of Digital Identity and for parts of the system, particularly consumer protections, to be enshrined in the Bill.

Phase 2 of the consultation process involves engagement with stakeholders and the public to develop clear policy positions on the following key areas:

  • structure of the Legislation
  • scope of the Legislation and interoperability with other systems
  • regulatory oversight of the system and TDIF Accreditation system
  • privacy and consumer safeguards
  • trustmarks
  • liability and redress framework
  • penalties and enforcement
  • administration of charges for the Digital Identity system.

We are now encouraging anyone with an interest in Digital Identity to submit their views in writing on the positions outlined in this Position Paper. Please see the submission form page for further details.

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Set it up once, and then reuse it whenever you are asked to prove who you are.

How to create your Digital Identity
Hands holding a smartphone that is displaying a key on the screen

© Commonwealth of Australia. With the exception of the Commonwealth Coat of Arms and where otherwise noted, this work is licensed under the CC BY 4.0 license.

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