The Polish Ministry of Digitalization recently stirred controversy with a draft amendment to the law regarding trust services and electronic identification, introduced to align Polish regulations with the EU's eIDAS 2.0 regulation. This new EU regulation mandates member states to provide a European digital identity wallet, which enables identification across the EU without disclosing full personal details. The proposal suggests that the current mCitizen application cannot be adapted to meet the requirements of this new digital identity system.

According to the draft, the existing mCitizen app will not suffice for the European digital identity wallet, necessitating the development of a completely new solution, including a new application. This decision appears to stem from both the impracticality of maintaining two similar applications simultaneously and the desire to avoid user confusion between overlapping services. The government aims to streamline identity verification processes while ensuring compliance with European regulations.

This development may significantly impact not only mCitizen's user base but also the broader landscape of digital identity management in Poland. As citizens gear up for potentially adapting to a new system, the implications for technology investments, user education, and data privacy will be crucial moving forward. The extent of these changes will depend on how effectively the government communicates the transition and the functionalities of the new digital identity solutions that will emerge in the coming years.