diff --git a/packages/core/src/components/nav/nav-interface.ts b/packages/core/src/components/nav/nav-interface.ts
index a378b8a8b4..1813fcdbf8 100644
--- a/packages/core/src/components/nav/nav-interface.ts
+++ b/packages/core/src/components/nav/nav-interface.ts
@@ -1,6 +1,6 @@
 
 /* it is very important to keep this interface in sync with ./nav */
-import { NavOptions, ViewController } from '../../index';
+import { NavOptions, PublicViewController } from '../../index';
 
 export interface PublicNav {
   push(component: any, data?: any, opts?: NavOptions): Promise<any>;
@@ -11,14 +11,14 @@ export interface PublicNav {
   popToRoot(opts?: NavOptions): Promise<any>;
   popTo(indexOrViewCtrl: any, opts?: NavOptions): Promise<any>;
   removeIndex(startIndex: number, removeCount?: number, opts?: NavOptions): Promise<any>;
-  removeView(viewController: ViewController, opts?: NavOptions): Promise<any>;
+  removeView(viewController: PublicViewController, opts?: NavOptions): Promise<any>;
   setPages(componentDataPairs: any[], opts?: NavOptions): Promise<any>;
 
-  getActive?(): ViewController;
-  getPrevious?(view?: ViewController): ViewController;
-  canGoBack?(nav: PublicNav): boolean;
+  getActive?(): PublicViewController;
+  getPrevious?(view?: PublicViewController): PublicViewController;
+  canGoBack?(): boolean;
   canSwipeBack?(): boolean;
-  getFirstView?(): ViewController;
+  getFirstView?(): PublicViewController;
 
   element?: HTMLElement;
 }
diff --git a/packages/core/src/components/nav/nav.tsx b/packages/core/src/components/nav/nav.tsx
index 608c79ce09..743bd74dbf 100644
--- a/packages/core/src/components/nav/nav.tsx
+++ b/packages/core/src/components/nav/nav.tsx
@@ -7,6 +7,7 @@ import {
   NavOptions,
   NavState,
   PublicNav,
+  PublicViewController,
   RouterEntries,
   RouterEntry,
   ViewController
@@ -79,7 +80,7 @@ export class Nav implements PublicNav {
     }
   }
 
-  getViews(): ViewController[] {
+  getViews(): PublicViewController[] {
     return getViews(this);
   }
 
@@ -124,7 +125,7 @@ export class Nav implements PublicNav {
   }
 
   @Method()
-  removeView(viewController: ViewController, opts?: NavOptions): Promise<any> {
+  removeView(viewController: PublicViewController, opts?: NavOptions): Promise<any> {
     return removeViewImpl(this, viewController, opts);
   }
 
@@ -134,18 +135,18 @@ export class Nav implements PublicNav {
   }
 
   @Method()
-  getActive(): ViewController {
+  getActive(): PublicViewController {
     return getActiveImpl(this);
   }
 
   @Method()
-  getPrevious(view?: ViewController): ViewController {
-    return getPreviousImpl(this, view);
+  getPrevious(view?: PublicViewController): PublicViewController {
+    return getPreviousImpl(this, view as ViewController);
   }
 
   @Method()
-  canGoBack(nav: Nav): boolean {
-    return nav.views && nav.views.length > 0;
+  canGoBack(): boolean {
+    return canGoBackImpl(this);
   }
 
   @Method()
@@ -154,7 +155,7 @@ export class Nav implements PublicNav {
   }
 
   @Method()
-  getFirstView(): ViewController {
+  getFirstView(): PublicViewController {
     return getFirstView(this);
   }
 
@@ -278,9 +279,9 @@ export function removeImpl(nav: Nav, startIndex: number, removeCount: number, op
   });
 }
 
-export function removeViewImpl(nav: Nav, viewController: ViewController, opts?: NavOptions) {
+export function removeViewImpl(nav: Nav, viewController: PublicViewController, opts?: NavOptions) {
   return getNavController(nav).then(() => {
-    return nav.navController.removeView(nav, viewController, opts);
+    return nav.navController.removeView(nav, viewController as ViewController, opts);
   });
 }
 
@@ -298,6 +299,10 @@ export function getNavController(nav: Nav): Promise<any> {
   return isReady(nav.navController as any as HTMLElement);
 }
 
+export function canGoBackImpl(nav: Nav) {
+  return nav.views && nav.views.length > 0;
+}
+
 export function navInitializedImpl(potentialParent: Nav, event: CustomEvent) {
   if (potentialParent.element !== event.target) {
     // set the parent on the child nav that dispatched the event
diff --git a/packages/core/src/components/tabs/tab.tsx b/packages/core/src/components/tabs/tab.tsx
index dfb27e20d7..93fb62760e 100644
--- a/packages/core/src/components/tabs/tab.tsx
+++ b/packages/core/src/components/tabs/tab.tsx
@@ -1,5 +1,5 @@
 import { Component, Element, Event, EventEmitter, Method, Prop, PropDidChange, State } from '@stencil/core';
-import { StencilElement, ViewController } from '../../index';
+import { PublicViewController, StencilElement } from '../../index';
 
 /**
  * @name Tab
@@ -214,7 +214,7 @@ export class Tab {
   }
 
   @Method()
-  getActive(): Promise<ViewController> {
+  getActive(): Promise<PublicViewController> {
     return this.nav.then(nav => nav && nav.getActive());
   }
 
diff --git a/packages/core/src/navigation/nav-controller-functions.ts b/packages/core/src/navigation/nav-controller-functions.ts
index bd461fe860..19321ed44f 100644
--- a/packages/core/src/navigation/nav-controller-functions.ts
+++ b/packages/core/src/navigation/nav-controller-functions.ts
@@ -481,7 +481,7 @@ export function initializeViewBeforeTransition(nav: Nav, ti: TransitionInstructi
   return startTransaction(ti).then(() => {
     const viewControllers = convertComponentToViewController(nav, ti);
     ti.insertViews = viewControllers;
-    leavingView = ti.nav.getActive();
+    leavingView = ti.nav.getActive() as ViewController;
     enteringView = getEnteringView(ti, ti.nav, leavingView);
 
     if (!leavingView && !enteringView) {
diff --git a/packages/core/src/navigation/nav-interfaces.ts b/packages/core/src/navigation/nav-interfaces.ts
index 4ffb8fbd5a..ca369cc99d 100644
--- a/packages/core/src/navigation/nav-interfaces.ts
+++ b/packages/core/src/navigation/nav-interfaces.ts
@@ -88,6 +88,7 @@ export interface TransitionBuilder {
 }
 
 export interface PublicViewController {
+  id?: string;
   component?: any;
   instance?: any;
   element?: HTMLElement;
diff --git a/packages/core/src/navigation/nav-utils.ts b/packages/core/src/navigation/nav-utils.ts
index c2eb4c083f..d78656176a 100644
--- a/packages/core/src/navigation/nav-utils.ts
+++ b/packages/core/src/navigation/nav-utils.ts
@@ -40,7 +40,7 @@ export function setZIndex(nav: Nav, enteringView: ViewController, leavingView: V
       return;
     }
 
-    leavingView = leavingView || nav.getPrevious(enteringView);
+    leavingView = leavingView || nav.getPrevious(enteringView) as ViewController;
 
     if (leavingView && isDef(leavingView.zIndex)) {
       if (direction === DIRECTION_BACK) {
@@ -176,7 +176,7 @@ export function getActiveImpl(nav: Nav): ViewController {
 
 export function getPreviousImpl(nav: Nav, viewController: ViewController): ViewController {
   if (!viewController) {
-    viewController = nav.getActive();
+    viewController = nav.getActive() as ViewController;
   }
   return nav.views[nav.views.indexOf(viewController) - 1];
 }