Public and private sector institutions that rely on the Ghana Card for identity authentication have been given a three-month grace period to comply with new biometric verification requirements introduced under Legislative Instrument (LI) 2533.

The Minister of the Interior, Muntaka Mubarak Mohammed, announced the transition period during a press briefing on Wednesday, July 22, 2026, explaining that affected organisations have from July 27 to November 2, 2026, to establish the required systems, infrastructure and staff capacity needed to implement the new rules.

“Organisations are accordingly granted a transition period of three months from July 27 to November 2, 2026, within which to establish the necessary protocols to implement LI 2533,” the Minister stated.

He clarified that the transition window is only to facilitate a smooth rollout of the regulation and does not amount to a suspension or waiver of the requirements under the new law.

Mr Muntaka said institutions are expected to begin the onboarding process immediately and ensure full compliance by the end of the three-month period.

Under LI 2533, organisations will no longer be allowed to verify identities using photocopies, scanned versions or simple visual checks of the Ghana Card.

Instead, they will be required to confirm identities through biometric authentication linked to the National Identification Register or through smart card devices approved by the National Identification Authority (NIA).

The Interior Minister urged banks, telecommunications companies, health facilities, educational institutions, insurance providers, government agencies and all other entities involved in identity verification to commence or complete their registration on the NIA’s Identity Verification System Platform as soon as possible.

He warned that institutions that fail to comply after the transition period could face sanctions, including fines and possible suspension of access to the national identity verification platform.

According to Mr Muntaka, the reforms are designed to improve the security of Ghana’s identity management system, combat identity-related fraud and safeguard the personal information of citizens and residents.