NIA develops mobile app for Ghana Card identity verification

The National Identification Authority (NIA) has developed a mobile application to enable individuals and small businesses to verify the identities of people using the Ghana Card’s biometric system.

The application is intended to make biometric verification more accessible to people and businesses that may be unable to satisfy the requirements for using the NIA’s main verification platform.

Speaking at a press briefing in Accra on Monday, November 2, 2026, the NIA’s Director of Corporate Affairs, Williams Ampomah Emmanuel Darlas, said the application would provide a simple “yes or no” response to establish whether an individual’s identity matched the information presented.

He explained that institutions seeking access to the main verification platform were required to obtain certification from the Data Protection Commission, a requirement that could be difficult for individuals and small businesses to meet.

According to him, the new mobile solution is designed to bridge that gap and make biometric identity verification available to a broader segment of the population.

“So nobody has an excuse to transact business using the Ghana Card through OCLA inspection. We made sure every facet of the populace [is] served,” he said.

Mr Darlas also assured the public that the application had been developed with safeguards against identity fraud.

“With the mobile app, Ghanaians should be rest assured, the information there will not expose any Ghanaian to identity fraud. We are a tech institution, so we are very careful of what we introduce to the public,” he added.

The application follows the introduction of L.I. 2523, the National Identity Register (Amendment) Regulations, 2026, which extend biometric verification obligations to individuals undertaking transactions that require identity confirmation.

Regulations 9A and 9B require people to verify the identities of those they transact with through biometric checks.

Citing land transactions as an example, Mr Darlas said parties involved in the sale of land were required to confirm each other’s identities using the biometric verification process.

“You are required to do so through biometric verification,” he said.

He added that the mobile application would be launched “very soon.”

Meanwhile, the grace period for complying with the new regulations ends on Monday, November 2, 2026.

The NIA’s Biometric Verification Implementation Task Force is expected to begin inspecting institutions on Tuesday, November 3, to ensure compliance.

Institutions found photocopying, scanning or keeping copies of the Ghana Card, or relying solely on visual checks to establish identities, could face prosecution and fines ranging from 500 to 2,000 penalty units.

They could also be removed from the NIA’s verification platform and charged a surcharge of up to 20 per cent of their annual verification fees.