How to issue a CWT credential (Direct issuance)

CWT credentials represent claims of data that can be cryptographically proven as authentic while being compact enough to fit inside a QR code.

This guide will show you how to create and format a new CWT or Semantic CWT credential.

This guide can be used to create both CWT and Semantic CWT credentials. Any differences in the workflow are highlighted throughout the guide.

Prerequisites

DIDs:
- Issuer DID: This is a did:web that identifies the issuer who attests the claims in the credential are accurate.
  - Refer to Create a did:web if you need assistance in creating one.
  - You can only sign a CWT credential using DIDs with a P-256 key type. MATTR VII creates did:webs with this key type (and others) by default.
Claim values: The claims you wish to include in the credential. This is the information attested by the issuer.
The identifier of the desired PDF, Apple digital pass or Google digital pass template.

Overview

Direct issuance of a CWT credential comprises the following steps:

Sign the CWT credential.
Format the signed CWT credential.
Share the formatted credential.

Sign the CWT credential

The request to sign the credential is different when you’re signing a CWT or Semantic CWT Credential.

Request

Make a request of the following structure to create and sign a new CWT credential:

HTTP

POST /v2/credentials/compact/sign

Request body

JSON

{
    "payload": {
        "iss": "did:web:learn.vii.au01.mattr.global",
        "nbf": 1704099600,
        "exp": 1767258000,
        "type": "Course Credential",
        "name": "Emma Jane Tasma",
        "code": "HS.278",
        "certificationName": "Working at Heights",
        "certificationLevel": "Level 4",
        "issuerName": "Advanced Safety Training",
        "expiry": "2026-01-01"
    },
    "revocable": true,
    "isRevoked": false
}

iss : Use the Issuer DID. This must be a publicly available and resolvable did:web for the credential to be valid and verifiable.
nbf : Not before. When set, credential verification will fail if the current time is earlier than the nbf value. Must be expressed as a Unix timestamp.
exp : Expiry. When set, credential verification will fail if the current time is later than the exp value. Must be expressed as a Unix timestamp.
type : Credential type.
name : Example for a custom claim.
code : Example for a custom claim.
certificationName : Example for a custom claim.
certificationLevel : Example for a custom claim.
issuerName : Example for a custom claim.
revocable : When set to true, the signed credential can later be revoked. When set to false, the credential cannot be revoked. Defaults to false.
isRevoked: When set to true, the signed credential is issued as revoked, and must be unrevoked to become valid. If isRevoked is provided (e.g. set to either true or false), revocable must be set to true. Defaults to false.

Response

JSON

{
    "id": "bKcrxojFSuSZvI5qhKInxA",
    "decoded": {
        "iss": "did:web:learn.vii.au01.mattr.global",
        "nbf": 1704099600,
        "type": "Course Credential",
        "exp": 1767258000,
        "name": "Emma Jane Tasma",
        "code": "HS.278",
        "certificationName": "Working at Heights",
        "certificationLevel": "Level 4",
        "issuerName": "Advanced Safety Training",
        "status": {
            "index": 3,
            "url": "https://learn.vii.au01.mattr.global/v2/credentials/compact/revocation-lists/887cd140-e4d7-4518-b70f-305b23778848"
        },
        "jti": "bKcrxojFSuSZvI5qhKInxA"
    },
    "encoded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
}

id : Unique credential identifier. This is required when revoking a credential.
decoded : This is the decoded version of the credential. It includes all the information provided in the request, with the addition of the following elements:
- status : If revocable was set to true in the request, this object is used to provide information required for revocation:
  - index : This indicates the index of this specific credential within the revocation list.
  - url : References the revocation List which holds the revocation status for this specific credential.
- jti : This JWT ID identifies this credential and is identical to the id element. When revocable is set to true, this value is persisted on the tenant.
encoded : The base32 encoded string representation of the CWT credential. CSC stands for COSE Sign Compact profile. You will use this element to convert the credential into a format that can be shared with a holder.

Semantic CWT redentials represent claims inside a W3C Verifiable Credential data model which is then signed as a CWT credential.

Request

Make a request of the following structure to create and sign a new Semantic CWT credential:

HTTP

POST /v2/credentials/compact-semantic/sign

Request body

JSON

{
    "payload": {
        "iss": "did:web:learn.vii.au01.mattr.global",
        "nbf": 1704099600,
        "exp": 1767258000,
        "vc": {
            "type": "Course Credential",
            "credentialSubject": {
                "name": "Emma Tasma",
                "code": "HS.278",
                "certificationName": "Working at Heights",
                "certificationLevel": "Level 4",
                "issuerName": "Advanced Safety Training",
                "expiry": "2026-01-01"
            }
        }
    },
    "revocable": true,
    "isRevoked": false
}

iss : Use the Issuer DID. This must be a publicly available and resolvable did:web for the credential to be valid and verifiable.
nbf : Set the Unix epochtime and date the credential will be active from (Unix Epoch time) .
exp : Set the time and date the credential will expire (Unix Epoch time).
vc : This object includes all custom claims in the credential. These must comply with the W3C Verifiable Credentials Data Model and its vocabulary context.
revocable : When set to true, the signed credential can later be revoked. When set to false, the credential cannot be revoked. Defaults to false.
isRevoked: When set to true, the signed credential is issued as revoked, and must be unrevoked to become valid. If isRevoked is provided (e.g. set to either true or false), revocable must be set to true. Defaults to false.

Response

JSON

{
    "id": "urn:uuid:78e19496-8521-424b-8315-35fb1ecaf681",
    "decoded": {
        "iss": "did:web:learn.vii.au01.mattr.global",
        "nbf": 1704099600,
        "exp": 1767258000,
        "vc": {
            "type": ["VerifiableCredential", "Course Credential"],
            "@context": ["https://www.w3.org/2018/credentials/v1"],
            "credentialSubject": {
                "name": "Emma Tasma",
                "code": "HS.278",
                "certificationName": "Working at Heights",
                "certificationLevel": "Level 4",
                "issuerName": "Advanced Safety Training",
                "expiry": "2026-01-01"
            }
        },
        "status": {
            "index": 0,
            "url": "https://learn.vii.au01.mattr.global/v2/credentials/compact-semantic/revocation-lists/1fe00d6c-904f-497e-bbe1-a3cfdc0b8368"
        },
        "jti": "urn:uuid:78e19496-8521-424b-8315-35fb1ecaf681"
    },
    "encoded": "CSS:/1/2KCE3IQEJB5DCMSMGZITM5QBE2QFSAOZUYAXQI3ENFSDU53FMI5GYZLBOJXC45TJNEXGC5JQGEXG2YLUORZC4Z3MN5RGC3AFDJSZE7YQMJ3GHI3IIBRW63TUMV4HJALYEZUHI5DQOM5C6L3XO53S45ZTFZXXEZZPGIYDCOBPMNZGKZDFNZ2GSYLMOMXXMMLEOR4XAZMCORLGK4TJMZUWCYTMMVBXEZLEMVXHI2LBNRYUG33VOJZWKICDOJSWIZLOORUWC3DRMNZGKZDFNZ2GSYLMKN2WE2TFMN2KMZDOMFWWK2SFNVWWCICUMFZW2YLEMNXWIZLGJBJS4MRXHBYWGZLSORUWM2LDMF2GS33OJZQW2ZLSK5XXE23JNZTSAYLUEBEGK2LHNB2HG4TDMVZHI2LGNFRWC5DJN5XEYZLWMVWGOTDFOZSWYIBUNJUXG43VMVZE4YLNMV4BQQLEOZQW4Y3FMQQFGYLGMV2HSICUOJQWS3TJNZTWMZLYOBUXE6LKGIYDENRNGAYS2MBRAQNGSVRXSA5AAAIAACRAEAADPB7GQ5DUOBZTULZPNRSWC4TOFZ3GS2JOMF2TAMJONVQXI5DSFZTWY33CMFWC6Y3POJSS65RSF5RXEZLEMVXHI2LBNRZS6Y3PNVYGCY3UFVZWK3LBNZ2GSYZPOJSXM33DMF2GS33OFVWGS43UOMXTCZTFGAYGINTDFU4TANDGFU2DSN3FFVRGEZJRFVQTGY3GMRRTAYRYGM3DQB6YIBIHRYMUS2CSCQSLQMKTL6Y6ZL3ICWCAUPGIGEOOWODF77V7ZJPVLGAQC2ZUP7MASXIRTIRRPOIIBKNHKZ4LHROPWBPBCYTKA3GXWIRD736HIJNQENTSFUYIPQ77BG4ZPCTXYIY"
}

id : Unique credential identifier. This is required when revoking a credential.
decoded : This is the decoded version of the credential. It includes all the information provided in the request, with the addition of the following elements:
- type : MATTR VII automatically injects VerifiableCredential for all Semantic CWT credentials.
- @context : MATTR VII automatically injects https://www.w3.org/2018/credentials/v1 for all Semantic CWT credentials.
- status : If revocable was set to true in the request, this object is used to provide information required for revocation:
  - index : This indicates the index of this specific credential within the revocation list.
  - url : References the revocation List which holds the revocation status for this specific credential.
- jti : This JWT ID identifies this credential and is identical to the id element. When revocable is set to true, this value is persisted on the tenant.
encoded : The base32 encoded string representation of the Semantic CWT credential. CSS stands for COSE Sign Semantic profile. You will use this element to convert the credential into a format that can be shared with a holder.

Format the signed CWT credential

Once the CWT credential is signed, you can render it in one of several formats before sharing it.

Format a CWT credential as a QR Code

Request

Make a request of the following structure to format a CWT credential as a QR code:

HTTP

POST /v2/credentials/compact/qrcode

You can make a similar request to a different endpoint to format a Semantic CWT credential as a QR code:

HTTP

POST /v2/credentials/compact-semantic/qrcode

Request body

JSON

{
    "payload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
    "width": 800
}

payload : Use the encoded element from the response obtained when signing the CWT credential.
width : Optionally specify the desired width of the output QR code. When no width is specified MATTR VII will generate a QR code with an optimised width based on the size of the payload. Maximal value is 1000px.

Response

The response includes a QR code as a PNG file. This QR code contains the encoded credential and can be shared with the intended holder.

Errors

If the provided payload is invalid, the API will return one of the following errors:

400 :
- Payload is not a string.
- Payload does not match a CWT credential format.
- The credential has expired.
- Unable to validate or decode the payload.
- Generated QR code is larger than the provided width.
413 :
- The payload is too large to be stored in a QR code.

Format a CWT credential as a PDF

Request

Make a request of the following structure to format a CWT credential as a PDF:

HTTP

POST /v2/credentials/compact/pdf

You can make a similar request to a different endpoint to format a Semantic CWT credential as a PDF:

HTTP

POST /v2/credentials/compact-semantic/pdf

Request body

JSON

{
    "templateId": "ccad3b98-7086-4556-9e19-9e2aa6ca5c5b",
    "payload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
}

templateId : Use the id of the PDF template you wish to use to format this credential.
payload : Use the encoded element from the response obtained when signing the CWT credential.

Response

The response includes a PDF document with the information from the credential formatted according to the PDF template.

Errors

Bad request (400) Errors may occur in the following scenarios:

Payload is not a string.
Payload does not match a CWT credential format.
The credential has expired.
Unable to validate or decode the payload.
The PDF template does not exist.
The decoded payload doesn’t include a claim required for the PDF template.

Format a CWT credential as an Apple digital pass

Your Apple developer certificates must be valid when attempting to format CWT credentials as Apple digital passes.

Request

Make a request of the following structure to format a CWT credential as an Apple digital pass:

HTTP

POST /v2/credentials/compact/digital-pass/apple

You can make a similar request to a different endpoint to format a Semantic CWT credential as an Apple digital pass:

HTTP

POST /v2/credentials/compact-semantic/digital-pass/apple

Request body

JSON

{
    "templateId": "1b04f0ee-8e3e-4153-a0e0-8603a10e7f0a",
    "payload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
}

templateId : Use the id of the Apple digital pass template you wish to use to format this credential.
payload : Use the encoded element from the response obtained when signing the CWT credential.

Response

The response includes a signed bundle .pkpass file (binary format).

Errors

Bad request (400) Errors may occur in the following scenarios:

Payload is not a string.
Payload does not match a CWT credential format.
The credential has expired.
Unable to validate or decode the payload.
Apple developer account credentials are missing or incorrect.
The template does not exist or is incorrectly defined.
Required config.json fields are not defined.
The file name contains a special character that is not supported by the Apple pass template endpoint.
The decoded payload is missing a required value for pass.json.

Format a CWT credential as a Google digital pass

Your Google developer certificates must be valid when attempting to format CWT credentials as Google digital passes.

Request

Make a request of the following structure to format a CWT credential as a Google digital pass:

HTTP

POST /v2/credentials/compact/digital-pass/google

You can make a similar request to a different endpoint to format a Semantic CWT credential as a Google digital pass:

HTTP

POST /v2/credentials/compact-semantic/digital-pass/google

Request body

JSON

{
    "templateId": "1b04f0ee-8e3e-4153-a0e0-8603a10e7f0a",
    "payload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
}

templateId : Use the id of the Google digital pass template you wish to use to format this credential.
payload : Use the encoded element from the response obtained when signing the CWT credential.

Response

JSON

{
    "redirectTo": "https://pay.google.com/gp/v/save/ejqEeFUtiFRF2t_0hXelmd1TDaeoPES091NT7LBiDvrmKpYPrOlhBfeSKOaA"
}

redirectTo : This is the URL where the digital pass is available to download.

Errors

Bad request (400) Errors may occur in the following scenarios:

Payload is not a string.
Payload does not match a CWT credential format.
The credential has expired.
Unable to validate or decode the payload.
Google account credentials are missing or incorrect
The template does not exist or is incorrectly defined.
The decoded payload doesn’t include a field required in template.json.

Now that you have the credential rendered in the required format, you can share it with its intended holder.

Share the QR code image using your preferred communication channel (e.g. e-mail, messaging platform, etc.).

Share the .pkpass file using your preferred communication channel (e.g. e-mail, messaging platform, etc.). The recipient will be able to save the file into their Apple wallet.

You can use the “Add to Apple Wallet” badge as a visual cue. Download files from Add to Apple Wallet badge guidelines.

Direct PDF

How to issue a CWT credential (Direct issuance)

Prerequisites

Overview

Sign the CWT credential

Format the signed CWT credential

Format a CWT credential as a QR Code

Format a CWT credential as a PDF

Format a CWT credential as an Apple digital pass

Format a CWT credential as a Google digital pass

Share the formatted credential