Key Points
- “Presentation Exchange” has been removed from the OpenID for Verifiable Presentations specification
- Instead, “Digital Credential Query Language (DCQL)” is now the sole query language
- This change marks a major turning point in the world of digital identity
A Quiet Revolution: A Major Change in Digital Identity
In April 2025, a major turning point quietly arrived in the world of digital identity technology. “Presentation Exchange” was removed from the OpenID for Verifiable Presentations (OpenID4VP) specification, leaving only the “Digital Credential Query Language (DCQL).” Although the change was not announced with great fanfare, it is an extremely important development for digital identity and Verifiable Credentials (VCs).
What Was Presentation Exchange?
Presentation Exchange (PE) was the first query language for requesting VCs. It was an ambitious, multifunctional specification—a kind of Swiss Army knife—that aimed to enable complex queries involving multiple credentials.
Specifically, it could do the following:
- Serve as a general-purpose query language for credentials represented in JSON
- Query not only credential contents, but also attributes such as algorithms and formats
- Express complex conditions such as “2 of these, 3 of those, and any of formats X, Y, or Z”
However, this complexity was also a problem. It ran counter to the principle of “keeping simple things simple.”
Why Was a Change Necessary?
This change did not happen overnight. For years, many experts, including Michael Jones, had advocated for a new specification to replace Presentation Exchange.
The problems with PE included the following:
- An overly complex specification: PE had too many features, and many implementations used only a subset of them
- Interoperability problems: Implementations tended to be incomplete, making integration between systems difficult
- Negative feedback from implementers: As complexity increased, so did criticism from implementers
By contrast, the new DCQL is a purpose-built query language. Every required feature is based on actual, real-world use cases. It may not be as simple as everyone would like, but it is designed to meet real rather than hypothetical needs.
What Is the New DCQL?
The Digital Credential Query Language (DCQL) is a query language designed for a specific purpose. It eliminates PE’s complexity and provides features based on real use cases.
Features of DCQL:
- A simpler, easier-to-understand design
- Includes only features based on actual examples of use
- Designed specifically for the OpenID4VP protocol
DCQL was developed under the leadership of Daniel Fett, with contributions from many experts, including Oliver Terbu, Tobias Looker, and Michael Jones. Discussions at the Internet Identity Workshop and work at the IDUnion hackathon also made major contributions.
How the Change Unfolded
This change took nearly 2 years. The timeline was as follows.
- August 2023:
- Discussions begin at the OAuth Security Workshop around the question, “What does Presentation Exchange do, and which parts do we actually need?”
- October 2023
- Similar discussions continue at the Internet Identity Workshop, building awareness and consensus around the need to replace PE
- October 2023
- DCQL is added to OpenID4VP, temporarily resulting in support for both query languages
- 2024
- DCQL is further refined through discussions at the IDUnion hackathon
- April 4, 2025 (April 5 Japan time)
- Presentation Exchange is ultimately removed, leaving DCQL as the sole query language
A Historic Turning Point
It is significant that this change was made before OpenID4VP became a final specification. The evolution of the OpenID4VP specification can be traced as follows:
- The specification from the period when only PE was supported
- The specification from the period when both PE and DCQL were supported
- The current specification, which supports only DCQL
The change was made quietly through a GitHub pull request, but its impact is enormous.
Conclusion
The achievements of the Presentation Exchange developers deserve recognition. This change, however, takes the next step by building on that experience. As a result, the world of digital identity is evolving in a direction that is easier to use and more efficient. This change is an important turning point that affects the fundamental way in which VCs are presented.
In the evolution of technology, “making complex things simple” can sometimes be the hardest challenge. This change to OpenID4VP is one example of that challenge. It is expected to be a step toward making the world of digital identity understandable to more people and encouraging broader adoption.