The National Identification Authority (NIA) has developed a mobile solution for individuals and small businesses to easily verify the identities of people using the Ghana Card biometric system.
The mobile application is expected to make biometric verification accessible to people and businesses unable to meet the requirements for accessing the NIA’s main verification platform.
The Director of Corporate Affairs of the NIA, Williams Ampomah Emmanuel Darlas, at a press briefing in Accra on Monday November 2, 2026, explained that the application would provide a simple “yes or no” response to confirm whether a person was who they claimed to be.
He said institutions seeking access to the NIA’s main verification platform were required to obtain certification from the Data Protection Commission, a process which could be beyond the reach of individuals and small businesses.
The mobile application, he said, had been developed to address the challenge and extend biometric verification services to a wider section of the public.
“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,” he said.
“We are a tech institution, so we are very careful of what we introduce to the public,” he added.
The application is in line with L.I. 2523, the National Identity Register (Amendment) Regulations, 2026, which extend biometric verification requirements beyond institutions to individuals involved in transactions requiring identity confirmation.
Regulations 9A and 9B of the legislative instrument require individuals to verify the identities of people they transact with through biometric checks.
Mr Darlas cited land transactions as an example, explaining that people involved in the sale of land were required to verify the identities of the parties through biometric checks.
“You are required to do so through biometric verification,” he said.
Mr Darlas said the application would be launched “very soon”.
Meanwhile, the grace period for compliance with the new regulations ends today, November 2, 2026.
The NIA’s Biometric Verification Implementation Task Force is expected to begin inspections of institutions tomorrow, Tuesday, November 3, to enforce compliance.
Institutions found photocopying, scanning or retaining copies of the Ghana Card, or relying on visual inspection to verify identities, face possible prosecution and fines ranging from 500 to 2,000 penalty units.
They also risk removal from the NIA verification platform and a surcharge of up to 20 per cent of their annual verification fees.
