💍

Import Wallet

How to import a new wallet using a variety of methods!
You can import your existing Substrate or EVM based account into Nova Wallet using a variety of methods.
Import Method
Substrate Account
EVM Account
Mnemonic Passphrase
Yes
Yes
Raw seed / private key
Yes
Yes, but not compatible with Metamask
Restore JSON
Yes
Yes, but not compatible with Metamask

Import via Mnemonic Passphrase

You can import your existing Substrate or EVM account using your Mnemonic Passphrase.
  1. 1.
    Open the Nova Wallet application.
  2. 2.
    Select "Import wallet".
  1. 3.
    Select "Mnemonic passphrase".
  1. 4.
    Input your account's mnemonic passphrase and Input a nickname for your account.
  1. 5.
    Select "Continue" to finish importing your account.

Import via Raw Seed

You can import your existing Substrate account using your account's raw seed / private key. This functionality is planned for EVM accounts in a future update to Nova Wallet.
  1. 1.
    Open the Nova Wallet application.
  2. 2.
    Select "Import wallet".
  1. 3.
    Select "Raw seed".
  1. 4.
    Input your account's raw seed / private key and Input a nickname for your account.
  1. 5.
    Select "Continue" to finish importing your account.

Import via JSON file

You can import your existing Substrate account using a JSON file for your account and the associated password. This functionality is planned for EVM accounts in a future update to Nova Wallet.
  1. 1.
    Open the Nova Wallet application.
  2. 2.
    Select "Import wallet".
  1. 3.
    Select "Restore JSON".
  1. 4.
    Input your JSON by pasting it, or selecting it from your device's memory.
  1. 5.
    Input the password for your JSON file.
  2. 6.
    Input a nickname for your account.
  1. 7.
    Select "Continue" to finish importing your account.

How to acquire your existing account's JSON file

You can download your existing account's JSON file from the Polkadot JS extension by doing the following:
  1. 1.
    Open the Polkadot JS browser extension.
  2. 2.
    Select the 3 vertical dots located to the right of your account's name.
  3. 3.
    Select "Export Account".
  4. 4.
    Input the password associated with your account.
  5. 5.
    Select "I want to export this account".
  6. 6.
    Save the file to your desktop PC - you can then transfer this JSON file to your mobile device and use it with Nova Wallet.

Import from Metamask (Ethereum Derivation Paths)

To import an EVM account which is not the first derivation path account, then you need to carry out the following steps:
  1. 1.
    Open the Nova Wallet application.
  2. 2.
    Select "Import wallet".
  1. 3.
    Select "Mnemonic passphrase".
  1. 4.
    Input your account's mnemonic passphrase and Input a nickname for your account. Then Select the options button in the top right.
  1. 5.
    Change the Ethereum secret derivation path based on the number of your derived account.
For example, the first (default) account has the secret derivation path //44//60//0/0/0
The second account has the secret derivation path //44//60//0/0/1
The third account has the secret derivation path //44//60//0/0/2
This continues so that the N account has the secret derivation path //44//60//0/0/N-1
  1. 5.
    Select Apply.
  1. 6.
    Select Continue.

Import Polkadot / Substrate Derived Accounts

If you want to create and manage several accounts on the network using the same seed, you can use derivation paths. We can think of the derived accounts as child accounts of the root account created using the original mnemonic seed phrase. Many Polkadot key generation tools support hard and soft derivation. For instance, if you intend to create an account to be used on the Polkadot chain, you can derive a hard key child account using // after the mnemonic phrase.
If you want to create another account using the Polkadot chain using the same seed, you can change the number Substrate secret derivation path. For example, /1, /2, and /3 will create different derived accounts.
You can use any letters or numbers in the derivation path as long as they make sense to you; they do not have to follow any specific pattern. You may combine multiple derivations in your path, as well. For instance, //bill//account//1 and //john/polkadot/initial are both valid. To recreate a derived account, you must know both the seed and the derivation path, so you should either use a well-defined sequence (e.g. //0, //1, //2...) or be sure to write down any derivation paths you use.
To import a Polkadot / Substrate account which is not the default derivation path, you need to carry out the following steps:
  1. 1.
    Open the Nova Wallet application.
  2. 2.
    Select "Import wallet".
  1. 3.
    Select "Mnemonic passphrase".
  1. 4.
    Input your account's mnemonic passphrase and Input a nickname for your account. Then Select the options button in the top right.
  1. 5.
    Changet he Substrate secret derivation path to suit the derived account that you wish to import. Note: refer to the details at the top of this section for more info.
  1. 6.
    Select Apply, and then Continue. You will now have imported your derived account.