NIST FIPS 201 (PIV Standard)

Federal Information Processing Standard for Personal Identity Verification of federal employees and contractors.

NIST FIPS 201 defines Personal Identity Verification (PIV), the U.S. federal standard for a common, interoperable identity credential issued to government employees and contractors. It mandates a smart card carrying biometric data and PKI certificates, issued only after vetted identity proofing, to control both physical building access and logical system access. The companion SP 800-73 and SP 800-76 publications specify the card interfaces and biometric formats that make PIV cards interoperable across agencies.