Skip to main content

Start Here

  • Register or upgrade your app in the Developer Portal.
  • Upgrade to IDKit 4.x (see below).
  • Choose a migration path below based on your app’s behavior.

Uniqueness vs Session Proofs (3.0 to 4.0)

World ID 4.0 has two proof types:
  • Uniqueness proofs for one-time checks.
  • Session proofs for returning-user continuity (new in 4.0).
In 3.0, many RPs treated nullifiers as persistent user identifiers. In 4.0, nullifiers are one-time-use, and session_id is the stable link across requests. Rule of thumb: use nullifier for one-time uniqueness and session_id for continuity.

Upgrading to IDKit 4.x

Adopting World ID 4.0 requires upgrading to IDKit 4.x, which introduces major breaking changes to support the new protocol. What changed:
  1. RP context is required: Requests now require rp_context (rp_id, nonce, created_at, expires_at, signature).
  2. IDKit response changed: No longer reshape the payload or compute signal_hash for the verify endpoint.
  3. Backend verification endpoint changed: Use POST /api/v4/verify/{rp_id}.
  4. @worldcoin/idkit-standalone is discontinued. Use @worldcoin/idkit-core for vanilla JS/browser.
For details and example code, see the IDKit 4.0 integration guide.

Migration Timeline (Phase Dates)

Use these dates as the default migration timeline:
  • Phase 1 (Migration): through June 1, 2026
    • Upgrade SDKs/contracts, register your RP, and create v4 actions.
    • New World ID users will have v3 and v4 credentials
  • Phase 2 (Transition): June 1, 2026 to March 31, 2027
    • New users from this date will only be able to create 4.0 proofs.
    • All users migrated to 4.0
  • Phase 3 (v3 Cut-off): from April 1, 2027 onward
    • v3 Proofs will no longer be generated by World ID
If your rollout needs more time, extend Phase 2 and move CD later.

Migration Path

Choose a migration path based on how you previously used World ID in your application.

One time actions

These apps have a single long-running action. Examples: A stamp for every verified human in the world. A token given to every human in the world once.
Important: genesis_issued_at is when the user originally got their credential (for example, went to an Orb), not when they upgraded their authenticator to v4. A user who was Orb-verified in 2023 and upgrades to v4 in 2025 still has genesis_issued_at from 2023.

Migration Flow Diagram

This diagram shows the three-phase migration process: preparation, gradual transition, and v3 cut-off. Summary: During Phase 2, both v3 and v4 proofs are accepted. Phase 3 enforces v4-only.
Users who have an old World ID will not be able to claim after Phase 3 as their credential will be < TD. Because of this, Phase 2 should be sufficiently long, up to one year.

Step-by-step Migration Details

  1. Update SDKs and Contracts: Upgrade SDKs, contracts, and API calls to enable baseline support for the upgraded protocol. This is backwards compatible.
  2. Register in Developer Portal: Generate your new RP registration and relevant actions for the v4 protocol in the Developer Portal.
  3. For long-running actions:
    • Decide a transition date (TD) to start accepting v4 proofs. Specify a minimum genesis_issued_at = TD timestamp in the IDKit request with allow_legacy_proofs: true as a temporary compatibility mode. Only users who get their Orb credential (or document credentials) from this point forward can generate v4 proofs. Users who have not upgraded their World ID can still issue v3 proofs during this window. Track both nullifiers.
    • At a future cut-off date (CD > TD), switch the IDKit request to allow_legacy_proofs: false to stop accepting v3 proofs and accept only v4 proofs.
  4. For limited-time actions (for example, recurring grant drops): Make the transition at the action level. Short-running actions have a simpler migration path.

Example Code

Old Contract - Disable minting here:
Mint.sol
New Contract - Check both old and new nullifiers:
Mintv4.sol

Short Term Recurring Actions

These apps create multiple one-time actions. These actions are short lived. Example: A daily voting app where each vote requires a fresh proof of unique human. Migration approach: Migrate your SDK and Developer Portal account. Pick a new future action to start accepting only v4 proofs.

Migration Flow Diagram

This diagram shows a simpler two-phase migration with a hard cutover. Summary: During Phase 2, only accept v4 proofs for new actions.

Recurring Verifications and New Credential Checks

For apps that rely on unlimited verifications of the same action. Examples: Partners that check for users who’ve added new credentials. Apps that allow users to verify before each claim using the same action (note this is an anti-pattern of World ID). Migration approach: Migrate to Session Proofs, which let you verify credentials over a period of time while ensuring it’s the same user. The session ID returned in the proof becomes the long-lived stable identifier instead.

Migration Flow Diagram

This diagram shows how Session Proofs provide a stable identifier across multiple verifications. Summary: Session IDs provide continuity across verifications, replacing nullifiers as the stable identifier.
Creating a session
Proving a session

New Apps

Apps launched after v4 is fully released will not need to migrate.

Further Migration Details

  • Recovery applies to users in the v4 protocol. Users with pre-v4 credentials may receive a new credential based on issuer policy, while genesis_issued_at still reflects original issuance date.