Verify an Algerian driving licence online: complete guide in 4 checks (MRZ, security, validity)

Article updated in February 2026 to reflect developments in the Algerian biometric driving licence and online document verification tools.

Introduced in 2019, the Algerian biometric driving licence is an official document frequently used as proof of identity in many contexts: opening a bank account, administrative procedures, KYC checks, or digital platforms.

Like any official document, it may nevertheless be subject to document fraud attempts: expired licences, visual alterations, inconsistencies between visible fields and the MRZ, or tampering with security features.

How can you verify an Algerian biometric driving licence online and ensure that the document presented is authentic?

The answer is provided in this guide, through 4 essential verification steps.

Before any visual inspection, it is now possible to perform an initial automatic verification using a simple image of the document.

This step allows in particular:

• automatic reading of the MRZ
• validation of check digits
• consistency checks of fields (name, date of birth, sex, expiry date, nationality, document number)
• detection of data entry errors or common inconsistencies
• generation of a PDF report

⚠️ There is no public database allowing the official validation of an Algerian driving licence.

Online verification therefore relies solely on documentary analysis and must be complemented by a visual inspection of security features.

When access to the original document is possible, the first step is to examine the overall appearance of the card.

The licence must show no signs of cutting, delamination, gluing, overprinting, or visible modification.
Particular attention should be paid to:

• the photo area (and its contours)
• the edges of the card
• embossed or raised printed areas

Any signs of scratching, heating, partial replacement, or retouching constitute a warning signal.

The Algerian biometric driving licence follows the ID-1 format (credit card size) and is designed to make alteration attempts more visible.

The second step consists of verifying the consistency of the information visible on the document and its correspondence with the data encoded in the MRZ.

Priority elements to cross-check include:

• Document number: shown on the front and in the first MRZ line
• Date of birth: visible on the card and at the beginning of the second MRZ line (YYMMDD format)
• Surname and given name(s): displayed on the card and in the third MRZ line
• Sex of the holder: indicated by “M” or “F”, visible on the card and in the MRZ
• Expiry date: shown on the front, on the back (overprinted on the photo), and in the second MRZ line

Any discrepancy, even a minor one, between visible fields and the MRZ should be considered a warning requiring further investigation.

The document number can be found in two different places: on the top of the front side and in the first line of the MRZ band.

Both must be identical:

The holder’s date of birth can also be found in two different places: in the middle of the front side of the card, and at the beginning of the second MRZ line in the YYMMDD format:

Similarly, the last name and first names can be found on the front of the card and in the third line of the MRZ band:

The holder’s gender is indicated by “M” for males and “F” for females. This information is found on the front side and in the second line of the MRZ band:

Finally, the last element present in triplicate on the card is the expiration date, which can be found on the front, on the back (overprinted on the miniature photo), and in the second MRZ line in YYMMDD format:

The Algerian biometric driving licence includes a three-line MRZ compliant with ICAO standards.

The MRZ contains the main document data in a standardized format and incorporates four check digits designed to detect reading errors and many falsification attempts.

MRZ analysis allows:

• verification of the document structure
• mathematical validation of encoded data
• detection of transcription errors or inconsistencies

The check digits rely on the standard ICAO algorithm using fixed weightings (7, 3, and 1), making this verification reliable, fast, and easily automated.

1. Document Type: 2 characters, code indicating the type of document, represented by the letters “DL”.
2. Issuing Country: 3 characters, the ISO 3166-1 alpha-3 code of the issuing country, for Algeria it is “DZA”.
3. Card Number: 9 characters, unique card number.
4. Check Digit: 1 character, check digit of the unique card number.
5. End of line: 15 characters, “<” characters to fill the line.

1. Date of Birth: 6 characters, year, month, and day of birth in YYMMDD format.
2. Check Digit: 1 character, check digit of the date of birth.
3. Gender: 1 character, “M” for male, “F” for female.
4. Expiration Date: 6 digits, expiration date of the card in YYMMDD format.
5. Check Digit: 1 character, check digit of the expiration date.
6. Country Code: 3 characters, ISO 3166-1 alpha-3 code of the holder’s nationality (DZA in this case).
7. End of line: 11 characters, filler “<” characters.
8. Check Digit: 1 character, check digit of the concatenation of characters line 1 positions 6-15, line 2 positions 1-7, line 2 positions 9-15.

1. Holder’s Last Name and First Names: holder’s last name followed by first names, starting with the last name. The last name and first name(s) are separated by two “<” characters. In case of compound last name, compound first name, or multiple first names, they are separated by the “<” character. Spaces and apostrophes are replaced by “<” and the name is truncated at 30 characters if needed; any accents on letters are removed. The line is then filled with “<” characters.

An Algerian biometric driver’s license contains 4 check digits (or security keys) that allow to validate the preceding information.

They help prevent transcription errors or intentional/non-intentional modifications.

The algorithm used to create and validate the check digits is common to all identity documents: characters have a weight that is multiplied by a factor depending on their position in the string (7, 3, and 1).

Digits have their face value (“0” = 0, “1” = 1, … up to “9” = 9), the chevron “<” also has a value of 0, while letters have weights starting at 10 for “A”, 11 for “B”, up to 35 for “Z”.

Let’s take as an example the check digit of the date of birth from the specimen above.

The character string to validate is: “730212”.

To calculate the check digit, we proceed as follows:

– “7” has a weight of 7 and is in the first position, so multiply by 7: 7 * 7 = 49

– “3” has a weight of 3 and is in the second position, so multiply by 3: 3 * 3 = 9, add to previous 49, total 9 + 49 = 58.

– “0” has a weight of 0 and is in the third position, multiply by 1: 0 * 1 = 0, add to previous 58, total 0 + 58 = 58.

– 2 * 7 = 14, add to 58, total 72

– 1 * 3 = 3, add to 72, total 75

– 2 * 1 = 2, add to 75, total 77

We get a total of 77, from which we extract modulo 10 (the remainder of the division by 10), keeping only the last digit, which is “7”.

Our check digit is therefore valid since it matches the digit on the document!

This final step aims to confirm the material authenticity of the Algerian biometric driving licence.

It complements documentary analysis by examining security features that are difficult to reproduce, including:

• holographic devices (orientation-dependent effects)
• contactless electronic chip
• Multiple Laser Image (photo and expiry date on a reflective background)
• elements visible only under ultraviolet (UV) light

Some of these features can be checked with the naked eye, while others require specialized equipment.

A next-generation holographic device is used to protect the cardholder’s photograph.

It changes color depending on the viewing angle:

An electronic chip is embedded in the card, allowing contactless reading of the information stored on the document.

The photo and expiration date of the document are displayed on a shiny background.

The image changes depending on the card’s orientation.

This feature is found on the back, at the top right of the card:

Some elements are only visible under ultraviolet light, but this requires specialized equipment (thus not suitable for online verification of the Algerian biometric driver’s license).

You now have a structured method to verify an Algerian biometric driving licence online: MRZ analysis, information cross-checking, and visual inspection of security features.

Even without specialized equipment, this combined approach already allows the detection of a large proportion of common document fraud cases.

To go further, it is also possible to use an online document verification solution.

For example, TrustDocHub enables the automatic verification of an Algerian driving licence from an image, with results available directly in the application and as a PDF report.