Nearly two million veterans can now get and benefit from a digital version of the Veteran Card, which will make it easier and quicker to access key services and discounts via their smartphones.
From Friday (17 October), it will give veterans a seamless way to confirm their status in person and will include information already featured on their physical card – displaying their name, photo, latest service, and date of birth with the security features that protect their personal information.
By downloading the optional card on their smartphones, former Service Personnel can show their veteran status to access everything from housing and mental health support to reduced entry at museums and money off their shopping – all at the touch of a button.
Once application is approved, downloading the card takes minutes – far quicker than waiting for a physical card to arrive by post. Just like a digital bank card or rail card.
Veterans can download it via the GOV.UK One Login app, which, like banking apps, uses passcodes, Face ID, or Touch ID, providing the security veterans deserve whilst creating new opportunities to access services more conveniently. Once set up, veterans simply open the app and show their digital card.
The digital card is optional and will initially be available for in-person use, with functionality set to expand over the coming months to enable online use, further increasing convenience whilst maintaining security and creating new opportunities for veterans to access services.
Wider rollout of Digital IDs
The Guardian reports that the former military personnel will be used to test and refine the government’s divisive digital ID scheme.
In September, Prime Minister Keir Starmer announced a new digital ID scheme aimed at helping combat illegal working while making it easier for the vast majority of people to use vital government services.
The Digital ID will be mandatory for Right to Work checks by the end of the Parliament.
The scheme will be available to all UK citizens and legal residents, saving time by ending the need for complicated identity checks which often rely on copies of paper records.
Instead, the roll-out will in time make it simpler to apply for services like driving licences, childcare and welfare, while streamlining access to tax records. The new digital ID will be held on people’s phones.
There will be no requirement for individuals to carry their ID or be asked to produce it – but digital ID will be mandatory as a means of proving your Right to Work.
“This will stop those with no right to be here from being able to find work, curbing their prospect of earning money, one of the key “pull factors” for people who come to the UK illegally,” government said in an accompanying statement on Friday.
“It will send a clear message that if you come here illegally, you will not be able to work, deterring people from making these dangerous journeys.”
Starmer confirmed that the new IDs form part of the government’s crackdown on immigration.
“I know working people are worried about the level of illegal migration into this country. A secure border and controlled migration are reasonable demands, and this government is listening and delivering,” he said.
“Digital ID is an enormous opportunity for the UK. It will make it tougher to work illegally in this country, making our borders more secure. And it will also offer ordinary citizens countless benefits, like being able to prove your identity to access key services swiftly – rather than hunting around for an old utility bill.
“We are doing the hard graft to deliver a fairer Britain for those who want to see change, not division. That is at the heart of our Plan for Change, which is focused on delivering for those who want to see their communities thrive again.”
Starmer said the plan will combat criminal gangs who promise access to the UK labour market in order to profit from dangerous, illegal channel crossings.
A new streamlined digital system to check Right to Work will simplify the process, drive up compliance, crack down on forged documents and create intelligence data on businesses that are conducting checks to help the Home Office take action on employers who are hiring illegally.
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