Mobile driving licence (mDL)

Status: standardised profile. The mDL is the document type ISO/IEC 18013-5 defines. The SDK adds nothing to its schema; the demo only chooses values and a card design. The RTA-styled card is a demo design, not an official RTA product.

What is on it

The standard defines the full set; the ones you will usually ask for:

Field	Name to request	Example
Given names / family name	`given_name`, `family_name`	Abdul / Hakim
Name in Arabic	`given_name_national_character`, `family_name_national_character`	عبد / الحكيم
Date of birth	`birth_date`	1991-05-13
Licence number	`document_number`	987654321
Issue / expiry dates	`issue_date`, `expiry_date`	2024-03-15 / 2028-09-01
Categories	`driving_privileges`	B, from 2024-03-15
Photo	`portrait`	(image)
Signature	`signature_usual_mark`	(image)
Age checks	`age_over_18`, `age_over_21`	true
Issuing authority / country	`issuing_authority`, `issuing_country`	Road Transport Authority / AE

Namespace: org.iso.18013.5.1.

Typical requests

Car rental: names, portrait, age_over_21, document_number, expiry_date (what DriveNow asks for).
Roadside: RequestPresets.MDL_DRIVER_CHECK (identity, number, categories).
Age only: portrait, age_over_18.

Requests.mdl(['family_name', 'given_name', 'portrait', 'age_over_21', 'document_number', 'expiry_date'])

Where it is used

DriveNow verifies it online, including through the browser’s Digital Credentials API.
The Verify app offers the age and licence checks in person.

Standards and references

ISO/IEC 18013-5:2021, clause 7 (data model) and Annex A/B (encoding, PKI).
Container, presentation, trust and revocation: mdoc architecture.

Doctype and namespaces


docType	`org.iso.18013.5.1.mDL` (`DocTypes.MDL`)
namespace	`org.iso.18013.5.1` (all standard elements)
namespace	`org.iso.18013.5.1.aamva` (AAMVA extension; not used by the demo)

Attributes (standard, as issued by the demo)

The demo issues the full ISO element set with realistic sample values, overriding the ones a believable UAE licence needs. Required = mandatory in ISO/IEC 18013-5 Table 5.

Identifier	Meaning	CBOR	Required	Encoding	Example
`family_name`, `given_name`	names	tstr	yes	Latin	`"Hakim"`, `"Abdul"`
`birth_date`	date of birth	full-date	yes	`tag 1004`	`1991-05-13`
`issue_date`, `expiry_date`	licence validity	full-date / tdate	yes		`2024-03-15`, `2028-09-01`
`issuing_country`		tstr	yes	ISO 3166-1 alpha-2	`"AE"`
`issuing_authority`		tstr	yes		`"Road Transport Authority"`
`document_number`	licence number	tstr	yes		`"987654321"`
`portrait`		bstr	yes	JPEG	(bytes)
`driving_privileges`	categories with dates	array of maps	yes	ISO 18013-5 7.2.4	`[{vehicle_category_code:"B", issue_date:…, expiry_date:…}]`
`un_distinguishing_sign`		tstr	yes		`"UAE"`
`administrative_number`, `sex`, `height`, `weight`, `eye_colour`, `hair_colour`, `birth_place`, `resident_address`, `portrait_capture_date`, `age_in_years`, `age_birth_year`, `age_over_18`, `age_over_21`, `issuing_jurisdiction`, `nationality`, `resident_city`, `resident_state`, `resident_postal_code`, `resident_country`, `family_name_national_character`, `given_name_national_character`, `signature_usual_mark`	optional elements	as per ISO	no	as per ISO	`sex: 1`, `nationality: "Singaporean"`, `given_name_national_character: "عبد"`
`biometric_template_*`		bstr	no	not issued by the demo	–

Local extensions: none. The AAMVA namespace is not populated.

Card field mapping

On the card	Source	Kind
RTA logo; UNITED ARAB EMIRATES / Driving Licence (EN + AR)	fixed	decorative
Portrait	`portrait`	data
LICENCE NO.	`document_number`	data
NAME	`given_name` + `family_name`	data
Arabic name	`given_name_national_character` + `family_name_national_character`	data
DATE OF BIRTH, EXPIRES	`birth_date`, `expiry_date` as `dd/MM/yyyy`	derived format
NATIONALITY	`nationality`	data
Signature	holder signature asset	decorative

Face: demo/brand-hakim/.../CardFaces.kt (RtaDrivingLicenceFace).

Issuance and provisioning

Demo: MdlSeeder + DemoIssuer self-issue on first run (validity 1 year) under the demo IACA. Real: OpenID4VCI from the licensing authority’s issuer.

Trust, presentation, validity

As in mdoc architecture. The demo VICAL lists the mDL doctype for the demo IACA. Verified in person by the Verify app, online by DriveNow (OpenID4VP and the DC API).

Selective-disclosure requests

RequestPresets.MDL_AGE_OVER_18   // portrait, age_over_18, issuing_authority → one big Yes/No
RequestPresets.MDL_DRIVER_CHECK  // the SDK's core element set

Requests.mdl(['family_name', 'given_name', 'portrait', 'age_over_21', 'document_number', 'expiry_date'])  // DriveNow

Example (explanatory JSON, not CBOR)

{
  "docType": "org.iso.18013.5.1.mDL",
  "org.iso.18013.5.1": {
    "family_name": "Hakim", "given_name": "Abdul", "birth_date": "1991-05-13",
    "issue_date": "2024-03-15", "expiry_date": "2028-09-01",
    "issuing_country": "AE", "issuing_authority": "Road Transport Authority",
    "document_number": "987654321", "un_distinguishing_sign": "UAE",
    "driving_privileges": [{ "vehicle_category_code": "B", "issue_date": "2024-03-15", "expiry_date": "2028-09-01" }],
    "age_over_18": true, "age_over_21": true, "portrait": "<JPEG bytes>"
  }
}

Interoperability

Fully standard: the demo mDL has been verified by independent third-party online verifiers and by the Verify API (the DriveNow fixture test). The iOS Digital Credentials sheet shows it for org-iso-mdoc requests.