23 July 2018
Licensees in QLD can now accept digital versions of approved IDs as acceptable evidence of age under the Liquor Act 1992, including for the purposes of ID scanning.
New ID forms accepted:
SA driver licence: my.sa.gov.au/faq.html
Australia Post Keypass: www.digitalid.com.au/accept
note: NSW Government has also announced that digital licensed will be available across NSW by end 2019
Pre-existing ID forms accepted:
- an adult proof of age card (e.g. Australia Post Keypass identity card)
- Australian driver licence or learner permit
- foreign driver licence
- passport (from any country)
- other recognised proof of age cards.
The ID document must be current and include a photo of the person and their date of birth. For more information visit OLGR – Compliance for Identification for all patrons
Checking ID
You are still required to check that the digital IDs are valid as you would with a hard copy ID. When checking, staff should:
- compare the photo with the patron presenting the ID
- check the date of birth confirms the patron is over 18 years (some forms of ID can be issued to minors), and
- identify the security features of each type of ID and use the appropriate verification techniques.
While apps can be downloaded to verify digital IDs, those currently in use have in-built security features to verify the ID. A ‘shake-to-animate’ feature on the digital South Australian drivers licence will animate the screen and display the time and date to show that the licence is not a screenshot. The Australia Post Keypass has an animation feature when showing the digital ID that can be triggered by tapping or shaking the phone, as well as a QR code that refreshes every 5 seconds.
Confiscating false IDs
You must not confiscate the phone or device even if it displays a digital ID that you have concerns about. The Liquor Act doesn’t require, or allow, a licensee to do so.
If you are presented with a digital ID that you suspect is fake or doesn’t belong to the person presenting it, licensees are encouraged to complete and submit a report for action by OGLR. For this purpose, the form previously used for reporting confiscation of physical ID has been updated to also provide for reporting of issues with digital ID. download the form here
ID Scanners
ID Scanner Approved Operators are currently working to develop a method by which ID scanners can accept digital IDs. In the short term, if a patron presents a digital ID, you can either request a hard copy ID or enter the details into the ID scanner manually.
