NIA suspends date of birth changes on Ghana Card nationwide

The National Identification Authority (NIA) has temporarily suspended all date of birth changes on the Ghana Card nationwide, effective Monday, November 9, 2026, following a review of the process.

The suspension means that applicants will no longer be able to submit new requests to correct or update their dates of birth at any NIA office until further notice.

The Authority has also halted the processing and approval of all existing applications that were already in progress.

In a statement issued on Monday and signed by the Head of the Corporate Affairs Directorate of the NIA, Mr Williams Ampomah Emmanuel Darlas, the Authority said the decision followed a review which revealed the need to strengthen safeguards surrounding date of birth changes on the Ghana Card.

The NIA said it was engaging key institutions, including the West African Examinations Council (WAEC) and the Births and Deaths Registry (BDR), to improve the guidelines governing the process.

The consultations, it said, were aimed at establishing a transparent, credible and standardised system for handling requests for date of birth changes.

The Authority explained that the temporary suspension would remain in force while the consultations continued and until the revised guidelines were completed and approved.

It said the public would be informed once the engagements with the relevant institutions had been concluded and the new procedures were ready for implementation.

The suspension is expected to affect individuals seeking to correct errors or update their dates of birth on their Ghana Cards, as well as applicants whose requests had already been submitted but were awaiting approval.

The NIA did not give a specific date for the resumption of the service.

It, however, apologised for the inconvenience the decision might cause and appealed to the public for understanding and cooperation.

The Authority reaffirmed the need for stronger measures to ensure that changes to personal information on the Ghana Card were handled through a reliable and properly regulated process.