Do not rely on photocopies for Ghana Card verification – NIA

The National Identification Authority (NIA) has issued a strong caution to institutions, including banks, corporate bodies, government agencies, and financial service providers, against relying solely on the physical inspection or photocopying of Ghana Cards for identity verification purposes.

In a statement dated July 16, 2025, signed by Williams Ampomah E. Darlas, Head of the NIA’s Corporate Affairs Directorate, the NIA expressed concern over what it described as an “increasing practice” by some institutions to depend on ocular checks and photocopies rather than utilizing the official Identity Verification System Platform (NIA IVSP). 

According to the Authority, this practice has heightened risks and contributed to the circulation and use of fake Ghana Cards by unscrupulous individuals.

“The NIA wishes to remind all institutions that physical inspection or photocopying alone is not a secure or sufficient means of verifying the authenticity of the Ghana Card,” the statement stressed. 

Institutions have therefore been “strongly cautioned to desist from this practice” and are being urged to onboard onto the NIA IVSP, described as “the only approved and secure method for real-time identity verification.”

The NIA advised institutions seeking to enrol onto the IVSP to initiate the process by contacting the Authority via idverification@nia.gov.gh. 

This, the NIA explained, will enable institutions to “carry out instant, reliable verification and help safeguard the integrity of the Ghana Card as the single source of truth for identification in Ghana.”

The Authority further warned that institutions found compromising the integrity of the verification process “do so entirely at their own risk,” adding that such actions could lead to “identity theft, financial loss, and reputational damage” for which the NIA “bears no responsibility and will not be held liable under any circumstances.”

The NIA urged all institutions that rely on the Ghana Card for their operations to “take immediate steps to comply with this directive to protect their clients, their operations, and the nation as a whole.”