VicRoads 2FA: how to set up an authenticator app for myVicRoads

myVicRoads is the VicRoads online account Victorians use for vehicle registration, licence details and payments. Two-step verification isn't optional here. VicRoads calls it "a mandatory requirement to log in to a myVicRoads account", you can't reach your account until it's on, and once it's set up it can't be disabled (VicRoads).

You choose between two methods: a 6-digit code by text message, or a 6-digit code from an authenticator app on a phone or tablet. VicRoads names the Microsoft and Google apps as examples, but its instructions work with any app that scans a QR code. This guide uses Authenticator App - Novaz on iPhone. Any authenticator app works the same way.

How we checked this guide: the VicRoads steps come from VicRoads' own help centre pages, linked below. The VicRoads website blocks automated access, so we read archived copies on web.archive.org on October 21, 2026. The newest copy of the two-step verification page is from August 1, 2025, and the page says it was last updated on February 26, 2025. We haven't tested the steps on a myVicRoads account, so a label may differ slightly. The Novaz steps are checked against the app, version 1.0.5.

Turn on two-step verification with an authenticator app

VicRoads' help page gives the outline but not the exact screen labels (VicRoads):

1. Log in to myVicRoads, or sign up for a new account.
2. Your dashboard prompts you to activate two-step verification. Follow the prompts.
3. When asked for your verification method, choose the authenticator app rather than SMS.
4. VicRoads shows a QR code. In Novaz, tap +, then Scan QR code, and allow camera access. If you're setting this up on the same iPhone that holds Novaz, take a screenshot of the QR code and use Choose a photo instead. See scanning a QR code on the same iPhone.
5. Type the 6-digit code that Novaz shows to finish.

VicRoads' help only describes scanning the QR code. It doesn't mention a text key you can type instead, so plan on scanning.

If you already use SMS and want to switch to the app, VicRoads says you can change the method at any time from Profile and Settings in your account dashboard. The same page also spells it Profile & Settings, so look for either.

When VicRoads asks for a code

You enter the code after your registered email address and password, each time you log in to myVicRoads. VicRoads' help doesn't mention a way to remember a trusted device.

Once you've logged in with your password and code, VicRoads offers to set up a passkey. A passkey lets you log in with Face ID, a fingerprint or a PIN instead of a password and a code (VicRoads). VicRoads presents it as an alternative way to log in, not a way to turn two-step verification off, so keep Novaz set up for times you log in with your password, such as on a device without your passkey.

No backup codes

VicRoads' help doesn't mention backup or recovery codes. Its only documented fallback for a lost authenticator is a phone call (below). If you choose SMS instead, VicRoads says a replacement phone keeps getting the codes as long as you keep the same number or SIM card. See authenticator app vs SMS for the trade-off.

If VicRoads rejects your code

VicRoads' troubleshooting advice is about SMS codes that don't arrive, not app codes that are rejected. For an app code, check the iPhone's clock first: open Settings > General > Date & Time and turn on Set Automatically. Novaz warns you when the clock is 15 seconds or more off. More causes are in Authenticator code not working?

Moving to a new phone

Do this while the old phone still works. VicRoads says that if you can still log in with your old device, you can set up the authenticator app on your new device from Profile & Settings (VicRoads). Log in with a code from the old phone, then scan the new QR code with Novaz on the new one.

If you've turned on iCloud backup in Novaz or kept a backup file, you can restore your accounts on the new iPhone instead and keep the same codes. Without one, that new setup is the way across. See How to transfer your authenticator app to a new iPhone.

If you lose your authenticator

If your phone is lost, stolen or replaced and you can't log in, VicRoads says to call it on 1300 650 266. The phone line is open 8:30am to 5pm on weekdays and 8am to 12pm on Saturdays (VicRoads). VicRoads' help doesn't say what proof of identity the staff will ask for or how long the reset takes.

A passkey you set up earlier may still get you in, since it logs you in without a code. If you use one, check its entries now and then under Profile & Settings and remove any device you don't recognize (VicRoads).

More in Lost the phone with your authenticator app?

Turning it off

You can't. Once two-step verification is set up, you can only switch between SMS and the authenticator app.

Official VicRoads help

• Two-step verification (read in an archived copy from August 1, 2025)
• Passkeys (help centre) (read in an archived copy from April 23, 2025)
• Passkeys (read in an archived copy from August 19, 2025)
• Log into myVicRoads (read in an archived copy from July 7, 2026)