Ghanaians residing in 11 countries can now replace their cards without travelling to Ghana, the National Identification Authority (NIA) has disclosed.

The service covers Ghanaians living in the United Kingdom, the United States, Canada, the Netherlands, Spain, the United Arab Emirates, France, Italy, Belgium, Germany and Denmark. Applicants have been directed to NIA’s online portal at register. nia.gov.gh for further assistance and details.

In Ghana a new Ghana Card for first-time adults below 25 years costs GH¢30, while card replacement has been pegged at GH¢200 at NIA District Offices.

On the other hand, first-time applicants under 25 years will pay no fee. Meanwhile, card transfer services will now attract a fee of GH¢75. First-time registration for foreigners have been set at the cedi equivalent of $120, while annual card renewal will cost $78.

This information was contained in a statement issued on Monday, January 26 by the Authority.

“The fees have been reviewed to support the efficient delivery of services and the long-term maintenance of the national identity infrastructure,” the NIA said.

The revised charges has become successful following parliamentary approval of amendments under the Fees and Charges (Miscellaneous Provisions) Regulations. This marks the first fee review since 2023.

Last year, the NIA announced that it was set to upgrade the Ghana Card into an electronic wallet, allowing holders to use it not only as a national ID but also for digital financial transactions.

Executive Secretary of the NIA, Yayra Korku Deku shared the news with Joy News’ James Avedzi, where he intimated that the initiative will help the authority generate revenue to support its activities. He is optimistic this will optimise the operations of the authority.

“What it means is that you can put money on your Ghana card and use it to do transactions. That is to pay for anything that you do. And we are hoping that that one will generate a huge sum of money for us,” she stated.

Adding that the e-wallet initiative will be a significant move that will reshape the NIA’s operations while boosting electronic money transfers in Ghana.

He noted that several financial institutions are eager to partner with the NIA to ensure the initiative succeeds. As of May this year, a total number of 648,862 Ghana cards printed by the National Identification Authority (NIA) were yet to be collected by their respective holders.

The NIA made this known on its Facebook platform when it released recent data on the national identification registration exercise as of May 9.

Per the data, a total of 18,713,474 individuals have been enrolled onto the National Identification System. So far, some 18,197,477 Ghana cards have been printed, whereas 17,548,615 cards have been issued.

The NIA urged individuals who have yet to claim their Ghana Cards to do so. "Still Haven’t Collected Your Ghana Card? Thousands of cards are ready and waiting! Check. Collect. Be Identified. Visit your nearest NIA District Office today, we’re Open and Operational!" the NIA stated.

Last month, the Ghana Revenue Authority responded to claims that it had been disconnected from the National Identification Authority (NIA)’s Identity Verification System (IVS).

The NIA disconnected GRA from its Identity Verification Service (IVS) platform on Tuesday, August 5, 2025 due to the GRA’s failure to settle a GH₵376 million debt.

In a statement released on August 5, 2025, the GRA clarified that the current administration seemed to have inherited a legacy debt due to some services rendered to the GRA by the NIA prior to 2025.

However, “from the GRA’s present assessment, there were no regulatory and governance approvals for the transaction that created the purported debt. GRA’s principles of transparency, compliance and governance protocols do not permit enforcement of transactions that do not meet regulatory requirements, particularly as demanded by the reset vision of the President and the Government,” the statement read.

BoG makes Ghana Card sole identity document for banking, digital transactions nationwide

The Bank of Ghana (BoG) has issued a revised Supervisory Guidance Note on the use of the Ghana Card in banking and digital financial transactions across the country.

In a 19-page document shared on January 8, the central bank announced the Ghana Card as the primary and, in most cases, sole form of identification for financial transactions nationwide.

The new directives replace the June 2022 guidance, which introduced the Ghana Card as the primary ID for financial transactions.