Ghana’s National Identification Authority (NIA) has begun sending a task force to check that institutions use biometric verification rather than photocopies or visual inspection of the Ghana Card, after a grace period under new regulations ended on November 2. Institutions found in breach could face prosecution and fines of up to GH¢24,000.
“Tomorrow, the 3rd of November 2026, you will see our task force on the streets. We will visit institutions and make sure they are complying with L.I. 2523,” Williams Ampomah Emmanuel Darlas, who heads corporate affairs at the NIA, told reporters in Accra. L.I. 2523, the National Identity Register (Amendment) Regulations, 2026, made biometric verification the required method for checking the card.
Darlas said institutions are barred from photocopying, scanning or keeping copies of the card for identity verification. Penalties run from 500 to 2,000 penalty units depending on the offense, and the NIA can remove violators from its verification platform and restrict their future access. He also warned against reaching the platform through third parties, saying the NIA does not use intermediaries, resellers or agents. Institutions already connected may not sublet access to others, and the authority said it has identified some organizations doing so.
To join the platform, an institution must be legally registered in Ghana, obtain certification from the Data Protection Commission and complete technical integration with the NIA before signing an agreement. Because that can be out of reach for individuals and small businesses, the NIA has developed a mobile app that returns a simple “yes or no” on whether a person is who they claim to be.
The regulations extend biometric checks to individuals in transactions that require identity confirmation. Regulations 9A and 9B require people to verify the identities of those they transact with, and Darlas cited land sales as an example. “Nobody has an excuse. We made sure every facet of the populace [is] served,” he said. “With the mobile app, Ghanaians should be rest assured, the information there will not expose any Ghanaian to identity fraud.”
The change does not require new cards or fresh biometric registration, the NIA said. The Ghana Card remains the official national identity document, and verification relies on information captured during the original registration.
Sources: MyJoyOnline, Graphic Online, Ghana Business News, Adomonline
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By the ID Tech Editorial Team
