dcsimg
  • DL/ID Standards


  • DL/ID Card Design Standard (image)The DL/ID Card Design Standard (CDS) was developed by the Card Design Standard committee made up of jurisdictional and federal government members. The CDS provides for the design of driver licenses (DL) and identification (ID) cards and its intent is to improve the security of the DL/ID cards and the level of interoperability among cards issued by all North American jurisdictions. 

    2012 DL/ID Card Design Standard Released!

    AAMVA is happy to announce the release of the 2012 AAMVA DL/ID Card Design Standard (CDS). The 2012 CDS supersedes the 2011 AAMVA DL/ID Card Design Standard. AAMVA strongly recommends that jurisdictions beginning new card design and production efforts base their work on the 2012 standard. The 2011 AAMVA DL/ID Card Design Standard, along with previous versions, will continue to be available since jurisdictions have cards in production that are based upon those specifications.

    The following is a summary of changes between the 2012 CDS and the previous version (2011).

    • Courtesy Verification Program section added
    • Normative References added/updated…
      • European Commission Directive 2006/126/EC of 20 December 2006 O.J. EC No. L 403/18
      • ISO 1073-2:1976: Alphanumeric character sets for optical recognition -- Part 2: Character set OCR-B -- Shapes and dimensions of the printed image
      • ISO 8601:2004: Data elements and interchange formats -- Information interchange -- Representation of dates and times
      • EPC Tag Data Standard (Available from www.gs1.org/gsmp/kc/epcglobal/tds/)
      • EPC Generation 2 Air Interface Specification (Available from http://www.gs1.org/gsmp/kc/epcglobal/uhfc1g2/)
    • Veteran Indicator element has been added (optional human & machine-readable)
    • Note re overlap of zones has been added
    • Re-write on Annex H. stripping out most of the original narrative and areas that went beyond the scope of the standard

    Download the updated CDS

     

    AAMVA offers its free Courtesy Verification Program (CVP) to members through an arrangement with Intellicheck Mobilisa. The CVP provides an effective way for AAMVA members to determine if their driver's licenses and identification (DL/ID) cards and other motor vehicle administration documents using machine readable technologies conform to the applicable AAMVA standards and specifications. Just as compliance with these standards and specifications is voluntary, participation in the CVP is also voluntary.

    AAMVA strongly encourages its member jurisdictions to regularly take advantage of the CVP. Even though AAMVA has published best practices, standards and specifications covering DL/ID cards and the bar codes for other documents for years, inconsistencies in the implementation of those guidelines continue to occur. These inconsistencies adversely impact the interoperability that is the main goal of the AAMVA standards and specifications. A primary objective of the CVP is improving the consistency of implementation across all jurisdictions choosing to follow the AAMVA standard and specifications. Information gained from the testing of jurisdictions' Dl/ID cards and other documents is not only used by jurisdictions to improve their issuance systems but is also used by AAMVA to make improvements to the standards and specifications it publishes.

    AAMVA recommends that its members consider submitting DL/ID cards and other documents on three occasions. Probably the most important of these occasions is the introduction of a new configuration or design for the document. Many problems can be avoided if they are discovered before the actual issuance of documents begins. Similarly, the jurisdiction may choose to have documents tested as part of its selection process when choosing a contractor. Finally, AAMVA strongly recommends regular, periodic retesting of documents at least annually. This last recommendation is based on the fact that we have discovered that unintentional changes to the format and content of the documents actually being issued sometimes occur.

    The process for submitting documents is fairly simple. The necessary forms and instructions are contained in the CVP application form.

    Contact: Geoff Slagle, director, Identity Management (703) 342-7459

    To update and create realistic and durable standards employed by AAMVA jurisdictions, to enhance the interoperability of DMV and traffic data records, and to provide a voice for the AAMVA community in standards efforts with other organizations. This aims to improve customer service and safety while emphasizing privacy protection measures. 

     

    Learn more about the Committee
  • Other Resources



  • Statement Regarding DL/ID Samples

    AAMVA does not provide sample DL/ID documents / specimens / exemplars from our principal membership - for questions related to such requests please contact the issuing authorities directly.