canonical: https://jentic.com/apis/onfido.com/onfido # Onfido Public API v3.6 Jentic publishes the only available OpenAPI specification for Onfido Public API v3.6, keeping it validated and agent-ready. Onfido is an identity verification platform that helps businesses verify customer identities through document checks, biometric facial similarity, and database lookups. The API supports KYC and AML workflows for regulated industries, including financial services, fintech, gaming, and the gig economy. It exposes both API token and OAuth 2.0 client credentials authentication, with regional endpoints for EU, US, and Canada data residency. ## For AI agents Verify a customer's identity by submitting documents and biometric checks, then poll for the verification result. Designed for KYC, AML, and onboarding flows. ## Scope Does not handle payment processing, customer support, or marketing communications - use for identity verification, document checks, and AML screening only. ## Capabilities - Run document checks against passports, driving licences, and national ID cards - Compare a selfie or short video against a submitted ID document for biometric similarity - Trigger watchlist and politically-exposed-person screening as part of an onboarding flow - Generate SDK tokens that scope verification capture to a single applicant session - Authenticate using either an API token in the Authorization header or OAuth 2.0 client credentials ## Use cases ### Fintech KYC onboarding Onboard new banking, neobank, or crypto exchange customers by capturing a government-issued ID and a selfie, then running document and facial similarity checks before activating the account. Onfido handles document classification, fraud signals, and biometric comparison so compliance teams can satisfy KYC and AML obligations without building verification infrastructure in-house. Integration through the hosted Studio flow takes days; raw API integration takes a few weeks for full edge-case handling. Example prompt: Create an Onfido applicant for a new customer, generate an SDK token scoped to that applicant, and start a document plus facial_similarity_video check. ### Gig economy and marketplace trust Verify drivers, couriers, hosts, or freelancers before they start earning on a marketplace. Onfido confirms that the person presenting the document is its real holder by combining document authenticity checks with selfie or video liveness. This protects the marketplace from impersonation fraud and supports right-to-work checks where required. Most marketplaces complete integration in two to four weeks using the mobile SDKs. Example prompt: For a new driver applicant, request a document check on a UK driving licence and verify the applicant's selfie matches the licence photo. ### Regulated gaming and gambling sign-up Confirm that new players are old enough and not on a self-exclusion or watchlist before allowing deposits. Onfido layers age verification from the document, identity confirmation, and AML screening into a single workflow, returning a structured result that the operator can use to approve or reject the account. Operators typically reach production within a sprint using Studio. Example prompt: Submit an applicant with date_of_birth, run a document check plus watchlist_standard report, and return whether the player can be approved. ### AI agent identity verification through Jentic An AI agent that handles customer onboarding can call Onfido through Jentic without ever holding the API token in its own context. The agent searches for an Onfido operation by intent (for example, 'verify a customer's identity'), Jentic returns the operation schema, and the agent submits the applicant and check parameters. Jentic's vault injects the credential at execution time so the verification result is returned to the agent without exposing the secret. This pattern is used in onboarding copilots and KYC remediation agents. Example prompt: Search Jentic for 'verify identity onfido', load the create-check operation, and execute it for an applicant_id with a document and facial_similarity report. ## Key resources - **Applicants** — Records the person being verified and stores their personal details - **Documents** — Uploaded ID documents attached to an applicant for inspection - **Checks** — Verification jobs that run one or more reports against an applicant - **Reports** — Individual verification outputs such as document, facial similarity, or watchlist - **SDK Tokens** — Short-lived tokens that scope mobile or web SDK capture to an applicant ## Why Jentic - **Setup:** Wiring the Onfido Public API by hand means choosing between a token in the Authorization header and OAuth 2.0 client credentials, selecting the right regional host from eu, us, or ca, and building each identity and document check yourself. Through Jentic you install once, import the Onfido Public API from the API Directory, store the credential once, and your agent calls it against the correct region. - **Permission scoping:** Onfido identity and document checks are driven by the operations you enable rather than a resource in the URL path, so you limit the agent to the operations it needs, such as running a document check or starting a verification. AML screening or check deletion are excluded unless you add those operations to the allowed set. - **Credential handling:** Your Onfido API token or OAuth 2.0 client credentials are stored once, encrypted, by your own Jentic One instance and injected at execution time. They never enter the agent's prompt, logs, or context. - **Discovery method:** Agents search Jentic by intent such as 'verify a customer identity' or 'run a document check', and Jentic returns the matching Onfido operation with its input schema so the agent calls the right endpoint without browsing the reference docs. ## Related APIs - **Veriff API** — Identity verification with document plus selfie checks, similar coverage to Onfido - **Sumsub API** — KYC, AML, and transaction monitoring platform with broader compliance scope than Onfido - **Signicat API** — European-focused digital identity and electronic signature platform - **Plaid API** — Bank account linking and income verification, often paired with Onfido in fintech onboarding ## FAQ ### Why is there no official OpenAPI spec for Onfido Public API v3.6? Onfido does not publish an OpenAPI specification on its developer site. Jentic generates and maintains this spec so that AI agents and developers can call Onfido via structured tooling. It is validated against the live API and kept up to date. Get started with Jentic One, the self-hosted execution layer. ### What authentication does the Onfido API use? Onfido supports two schemes declared in its spec. The first is an API token sent in the Authorization header with the format 'Token token='. The second is OAuth 2.0 client credentials for backend service integrations. Through Jentic, the credential is stored in the vault and injected at execution time, so an agent never sees the raw token. ### Can I run a document and selfie check together with the Onfido API? Yes. After creating an applicant and uploading the document and live photo, you submit a check that lists the reports you want, typically 'document' and 'facial_similarity_photo' or 'facial_similarity_video'. The check runs asynchronously and you read the result either by polling the check or by handling the webhook event. ### What are the rate limits for the Onfido API? Onfido does not publish a single global rate limit in its OpenAPI spec. In practice the platform applies per-endpoint and per-account throttling that is communicated via 429 responses with Retry-After headers. Production volumes are agreed with Onfido as part of the commercial contract, so plan around the 429 signal rather than a hard ceiling. ### How do I run a KYC check with the Onfido API through Jentic? Install the SDK with 'pip install jentic', search for the operation with the query 'verify identity onfido', then load the create-check operation schema, and execute it with the applicant_id and the list of reports you need. Jentic handles the API token, the regional base URL, and retries on 429. ### Which regions does the Onfido API serve? The Onfido base URL is region-templated as 'https://api.{region}.onfido.com/v3.6'. Supported regions are EU, US, and CA, and you must use the region tied to your account so that data stays in the correct residency boundary. Mixing regions on the same applicant is not supported. ### Can I limit what my agent is allowed to do with the Onfido API? Yes. Because your Onfido access is governed by the operations you enable rather than a resource in the URL path, your self-hosted Jentic One instance lets you scope the agent to just the operations it needs, such as creating an applicant, uploading a document, or starting a document check. Higher-risk operations like AML watchlist screening or deleting a check stay off limits unless you add them to the allowed set. Your own rules decide which operations and credentials the agent may use, and the API token is injected at execution time rather than exposed to the agent.