Private sector to participate in government Digital ID scheme from December

The Australian Government’s Digital ID System framework is expanding to support private sector participation from the beginning of December this year.

Under the policy settings, businesses that choose to use myID to provide their own services will begin contributing to its costs from 1 January 2027 at the latest, the government said.

From 1 December 2026, accredited private Digital ID providers who join the Australian Government Digital ID System may be used by selected government services and will be able to charge commercially for their use.

Some government services will be able to choose whether to use private provider Digital ID services where this best meets their needs. This could include where a private Digital ID provider is better able to verify the identity of an individual who has foreign-issued identity documents than myID.

Higher-risk services where fraud could significantly affect people’s financial circumstances will not accept a private Digital ID provider.

Government services will continue to use the government’s Digital ID services without charge, and individual users will continue to be able to create and use a myID for free. Charging will apply only to participating business relying parties, with final pricing to be settled following consultation.

"This next stage of Digital ID reform will open the government system to private sector participation while keeping security, privacy and consumer protection at the centre,” said minister for finance Katy Gallagher.

"These policy settings give businesses greater certainty about how Digital ID will operate as the system expands, including arrangements for charging, provider participation and user choice.

"Digital ID is already helping millions of Australians access services more securely, and this reform lays the groundwork for a mature system that works across government and the private sector."

There are now 264 different government services that can be accessed using a digital ID; this includes 155 Commonwealth Government services and 109 state and territory government services.

In the 12 months from 1 May 2025 to 30 April 2026, there were more than 113 million ID-verified transactions, compared with 36.5 million in the corresponding previous period.