Ghana makes biometric verification mandatory for Ghana Card checks

Ghana’s National Identification Authority has made biometric verification mandatory for any Ghana Card check, and a photocopy or visual inspection is now an offence that can bring fines of up to GH¢24,000, or 2,000 penalty units. The change pushes banks and other institutions away from paper copies at the counter and toward live electronic checks, tightening fraud controls while raising the stakes for any office that still depends on manual verification.

The authority had already warned institutions, especially banks, on September 16, 2025, not to rely on photocopies of Ghana Cards because the practice is unsafe and prone to fraud. It has urged organizations to use its Identity Verification Service Platform, or IVSP, for authentic Ghana Card checks, and officials have said virtually all major banks already use the platform daily to verify identities in real time.

The new rule sits inside Ghana’s broader national identification system, which is designed to collect and provide accurate personal information on Ghanaians and legally resident non-Ghanaians through biometric identifiers. That makes the Ghana Card more than a laminated identity card at a counter: it is part of a controlled national database intended to confirm identity electronically rather than by eye.

The directive has been tied to an amendment under new L.I. 2523, which NIA posts linked in July 2026 to government’s decision to make biometric verification mandatory for Ghana Card verification. Published NIA fee schedules also govern the card’s issuance and replacement, underscoring its status as a regulated identity document rather than a casual copy-and-file credential.

For banks, telcos and other institutions that depend on identity checks for routine transactions, the practical test now is whether biometric systems can work quickly and consistently enough to avoid delays and exclusion. The policy strengthens security against theft and forgery, but it also puts pressure on digital verification systems to perform every time the counter is open.