Photocopying Ghana Card now illegal, offenders face fines up to GH¢24,000

Legal Shift Under L.I. 2111 Amendments

The prohibition against photocopying or manually inspecting Ghana Cards stems from a formal amendment to the National Identity Register Regulations, 2012 (L.I. 2111). The Executive Secretary and Chief Executive Officer of the NIA, Mr. Wisdom Kwaku Deku—also referred to as Wisdom Yayra Koku Deku—confirmed on July 15, 2026, that the amendment had been gazetted and was now in force. The regulation mandates that all identity checks for transactions must utilize the NIA’s official biometric verification system. According to updates provided by Mr. Deku, the amendment was laid before Parliament three months prior to its gazetting and has now matured, making its provisions effective.

The enforcement carries significant financial penalties for non-compliance. Based on a current value of GH¢12 per penalty unit, institutions found in breach of these regulations face fines ranging from GH¢6,000 to GH¢24,000, equivalent to 500 to 2,000 penalty units. For individuals who contravene the law, the penalties range from 50 to 500 penalty units, or GH¢600 to GH¢6,000.

Regulatory Background and Banking Sector Integration

This mandate follows a series of regulatory efforts initiated throughout 2025 to curb identity fraud and the mishandling of personal data. In March 2025, the Bank of Ghana and the NIA held a stakeholder engagement with the Ghana Association of Banks and all 25 universal banks regarding identity verification requirements. During that session, the Deputy Head of Office for Financial Integrity at the Bank of Ghana, Mr. Ashitei Trebi-Ollennu, stated that the central bank had never approved the photocopying of Ghana Cards, warning that the practice exposed customers to fraud. The Head of the Legal Directorate of the NIA, Mrs. Teresa Eson-Benjamin, also informed participants that the Ghana Card was the only legally recognized identity document for banking transactions. In September 2025, the Head of Corporate Affairs of the NIA, Mr. Williams Ampomah Emmanuel Darlas, announced that the authority was amending its regulations to introduce sanctions against institutions that photocopy or request copies of Ghana Cards, citing the increased risk of identity theft.

The transition toward exclusive biometric verification was further solidified in October 2025, when the Bank of Ghana issued a revised Supervisory Guidance Note. This guidance directs regulated financial institutions to:

• Use only the Ghana Card to identify and verify customers, including Ghanaian citizens, permanent residents, resident ECOWAS nationals, refugees, and eligible foreign nationals.
• Implement biometric liveness checks for customers opening accounts through digital channels.
• Restrict institutions from conducting transactions for persons who do not hold a Ghana Card, Non-Citizen Identity Card, or Refugee Identity Card, except under limited circumstances.

Implementation and Onboarding Procedures

While the regulation originated with a focus on financial security, the latest amendment extends the biometric verification requirement beyond the banking sector to all organizations that use the Ghana Card for identity verification. Mr. Deku has urged any organizations not yet integrated with the NIA’s identity verification platform to begin the onboarding process to enable them to comply with the new legal requirements. Entities seeking to integrate are advised to apply by sending an email to [email protected].

The Minister responsible for the National Identification Authority is expected to address the public in the coming days regarding measures being implemented to enforce the amended regulations. The development is intended to strengthen identity verification processes and reduce fraud by making biometric authentication the standard for transactions requiring Ghana Card verification.

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