Root Authorisations

Learn about establishing Root Authorisations for Trust Registries on cheqd.

What is a Root Authorisation?

A Root Authorisation — formally a Verifiable Authorisation for Trust Chain — defines the governance framework and trust rules for an entire decentralized trust ecosystem.

It serves as the starting point for all Verifiable Accreditations and Verifiable Credentials issued within a trust chain. Every accreditation and attestation must ultimately trace back to a valid Root Authorisation to establish its legitimacy.

The Root Authorisation anchors the root entity — the Root Trusted Accreditation Organisation (rTAO) — to a specific Trust Framework Policy, and enables verifiers to traverse the full chain of trust.

Purpose of a Root Authorisation

Function

Description

Define governance

Specifies the trust framework, operational rules, and any regulatory requirements for the ecosystem

Anchor trust

Establishes a verifiable starting point for all trust chains

Enable validation

Allows verifiers to confirm that any credential ultimately aligns with an approved governance framework

Key Characteristics

  • Credential Type: Must be of type VerifiableAuthorisationForTrustChain.

  • Issuer: The DID of the Root Trusted Accreditation Organisation (rTAO).

  • Credential Subject: The DID being authorised — this can either be:

    • The same DID as the issuer (self-authorisation), or

    • A different DID (delegated root authority to another trusted organisation).

  • Terms of Use: Must include a TrustFrameworkPolicy, referencing:

    • The name of the governance framework

    • A link (URL) to the full, published governance framework document

Required Fields

Field

Description

Example

Issuer

DID of the rTAO

did:cheqd:testnet:b003df6f-ec8e-48dd-9a2b-7011c5cf0a5e

Credential Subject

DID of the entity being root-authorised (same as issuer for self-authorisation, or a different trusted DID)

did:cheqd:testnet:6af412d7-2f04-4e12-a424-e6719db487ad

termsOfUse

Must include a TrustFrameworkPolicy with a governance framework reference

See Policies

Example of a Root Authorisation

{
  "@context": [
    "https://www.w3.org/2018/credentials/v1"
  ],
  "issuer": {
    "id": "did:cheqd:testnet:c6630f1e-9248-4af6-b7ac-5bcaf646f213"
  },
  "type": [
    "VerifiableCredential",
    "VerifiableAuthorisationForTrustChain"
  ],
  "issuanceDate": "2025-04-01T07:19:55.000Z",
  "credentialSubject": {
    "id": "did:cheqd:testnet:0a35d559-00ff-41b6-81ad-f64faa522771",
    "accreditedFor": [
      {
        "schemaId": "https://resolver.cheqd.net/1.0/identifiers/did:cheqd:testnet:c6630f1e-9248-4af6-b7ac-5bcaf646f213?resourceName=AIAgentAuthorisation&resourceType=JSONSchemaValidator2020",
        "types": [
          "VerifiableCredential",
          "AIAgentAuthorisation"
        ]
      },
      {
        "schemaId": "https://resolver.cheqd.net/1.0/identifiers/did:cheqd:testnet:b003df6f-ec8e-48dd-9a2b-7011c5cf0a5e?resourceName=VerifiableAccreditation&resourceType=JSONSchemaValidator2020",
        "types": [
          "VerifiableCredential",
          "VerifiableAccreditation",
          "VerifiableAccreditationToAccredit"
        ]
      },
      {
        "schemaId": "https://resolver.cheqd.net/1.0/identifiers/did:cheqd:testnet:b003df6f-ec8e-48dd-9a2b-7011c5cf0a5e?resourceName=VerifiableAttestation&resourceType=JSONSchemaValidator2020",
        "types": [
          "VerifiableCredential",
          "VerifiableAttestation",
          "VerifiableAccreditationToAttest"
        ]
      }
    ]
  },
  "termsOfUse": {
    "type": "TrustFrameworkPolicy",
    "trustFramework": "DAIAA Governance Framework",
    "trustFrameworkId": "https://medium.com/quantum-economics/why-we-started-the-decentralized-ai-agent-alliance-6eb0938d7bc5"
  },
  "proof": {
    "type": "JwtProof2020",
    "jwt": "eyJhbGciOiJFZERTQSIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9..."
  }
}

Important Notes

  • Self-Authorisation: When the issuer and subject are the same DID, the rTAO self-declares adherence to the trust framework.

  • Delegated Root Authorisation: When the subject is a different DID, the rTAO is immediately empowering another trusted entity to operate under the framework.

  • Policy Binding: All downstream Verifiable Accreditations and Attestations must reference a chain of authorisations and accreditations back to this Root Authorisation.

  • DID-Linked Resource: The Root Authorisation should be published as a DID-Linked Resource (DLR) attached to the rTAO’s DID for discoverability and validation.

Visual Flow

Root Authorisation (rTAO defines framework)
         ↓
Verifiable Accreditation (TAO is authorised to operate)
         ↓
Verifiable Accreditation (Trusted Issuer is authorised)
         ↓
Verifiable Credential (End-user receives attestation)

Summary

Concept

Root Authorisation

Defines

The trust framework and governance for the ecosystem

Issued by

rTAO

Subject

Either rTAO itself or another trusted entity

Credential Type

VerifiableAuthorisationForTrustChain

Linked Policy

Trust Framework Policy

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