From February 2025, business travellers could already present their digital identity card to TGV INOUI, OUIGO and Intercités controllers. From last October, they could present their driving licence during a roadside check, made available in the France Identité app, while waiting to be able to use it to rent a car. From now on, they will be able to fly without physical identification.
Indeed, since 24 June, and in all French airports, the digital identity card has been accepted during checks carried out by airlines, whether for baggage check-in or boarding. This is done by opening the France Identité application, clicking on the digital identity card, and then presenting the front face containing the necessary information for identity verification.
" A new stage in the modernisation of public services and the simplification of procedures for users ", the France Identité statement stresses, which estimates the number of users at over 4.5 million. " An advance that contributes to the modernisation of the airport journey and the simplification of the travel experience " hello Air France on Linked In.
It should be noted that this new feature only applies to domestic flights – or outward flights departing from France – as it is not currently possible to use the France Identité digital identity in foreign airports. This identity card is also not accepted during border checks.
No doubt, one day, intra-European flights will also be affected by this travel with ID cards on smartphones. This development is part of a broader travel transformation dynamic, driven in particular by the experiments conducted within the framework of the European APTITUDE project. », notes France Identité in a LinkedIn post. The European Union is indeed working towards the advent of a European digital wallet, with each Member State required to provide its citizens with at least one digital identity wallet recognised throughout the EU from December 2026. Airport check-in and border control, hotel check-in and car rentals, payments: all these stages of business travel could be greatly streamlined in the future.
