The NSW government’s digital birth certificate (DBC) will be trialled by Vision Australia and selected early childhood education centres, according to minister for customer service and digital government, Victor Dominello.
The minister has also foreshadowed trials of digital first aid certificates later in the year.
Since Dominello is retiring at the March 25 state election, the DBC will be one of his last major announcements, if not the last.
The DBC has been on the cards for some time: Births Deaths and Marriages delivered a proof-of-concept in 2021, and in November that year issued an RFP for a vendor to write the software.
In June 2022, Dominello reiterated the importance of the DBC, saying “if we get this right – it could be a platform/framework for many other applications that is the source of so much friction, as people move/work between states and territories”.
Dominello said on LinkedIn yesterday that the trial would begin in late April, and is designed to ensure the DBC is “fit for purpose, inclusive and accessible.”
Currently, he said, Service NSW is testing the app’s features, which include multi-factor authentication, PIN or biometric login, support for multiple certificates (for example, users can add certificates belonging to dependents), and verified and signed PDF support for sharing certificates.
“Importantly, there will be a menu with feedback, activity log, preferences, as well as help and support and report lost or stolen features for customers”, Dominello said.
“Vision Australia clients will test the app and provide feedback on its accessibility and future use cases of the digital birth certificate when the app is fully rolled out.
“By piloting with early childhood education centres, we will be able to hear feedback from staff and parents who will test the app and features.”
First Aid certificates
This morning, Dominello added First Aid certificates to the list of upcoming trials.
“Over 3 million people enrol in first aid education across Australia each year – I imagine many would struggle to locate their paper certificate” he wrote on LinkedIn.
“In an exciting first step, we will commence a pilot with TAFE NSW in the second half of this year to have your first aid credentials in your Service NSW app.”
He added that this would be “verifiable to source” rather than being stored as a static PDF.
If the trial goes well, Dominello wrote, the digital capability could also be applied to HSC, record of school achievement, and Rural Fire Service Authority cards.