So it turns out the story is less grim: you can buy a blank JavaCard [0] and use GlobalPlatformPro [1] to load arbitrary applets. You can load gpgapplet, isoApp

So it turns out the story is less grim: you can buy a blank JavaCard [0] and use GlobalPlatformPro [1] to load arbitrary applets. You can load gpgapplet, isoApplet, MuscleApplet, or any other JavaCard crypto software you like. This will be then be compatible with client-side software like OpenSC [2], at which point you get generic PKCS#11 or GPG functionality from it. You can get FIPS 140-2 Level 3 cards for, like, $11. Apparently there is some difficulty in correctly unlocking the card for applet loading, [0] https://github.com/martinpaljak/GlobalPlatformPro/tree/master/docs/JavaCardBuyersGuide https://github.com/martinpaljak/GlobalPlatformPro/tree/maste... [1] https://github.com/martinpaljak/GlobalPlatformPro https://github.com/martinpaljak/GlobalPlatformPro I'll let you know how it goes :).