All the things you can't do without a Ghana Card

In 2017, the Ghana card rollout began as part of efforts by the Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo/Bawumia-led administration to digitalise the country’s economy.

The president, after receiving a copy of his national identification card, indicated that the Ghana Card will make life simpler.

The card is to serve as a unique identifier for all transactions where the

Read full articleidentification of an individual is required.

Under the L.I. 2111 (2012), Act 750, it is mandatory for all Non-Citizens to register.

Since the roll-out program began, the National Identification Authority (NIA) has indicated that 16.7 million cards have been issued with about some 800,000 yet to be collected.

There have been challenges with the acquisition of the Ghana Card but so far, with many complaining about having registered without being able to access their cards.

This has even become more worrying because of the many things the Ghana Card is used for and for which reason some Ghanaians may suffer if they do not acquire their cards in due time.

GhanaWeb puts together all the transactions and procedures that cannot be performed without a Ghana Card.

All financial transactions:

The Ghana Card is required for undertaking all transactions at all Bank of Ghana licensed and regulated financial institutions – this is according to the Bank of Ghana.

Without the Ghana Card, one will not be able to conduct any transactions at
-banks
- specialized deposit-taking institutions
- non-deposit-taking financial institutions
- payment service providers and dedicated electronic money issuers
- forex bureaus and credit reference bureaus

Student loans:

The Vice-President, Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia, in June 2022 announced that students can now access loans without guarantors. According to him, the Ghana Card provides all the data needed about students to take a decision about their loan without them having to provide a guarantor.

National Health Insurance Scheme:

The National Health Insurance Scheme indicated that soon, only the Ghana Card may be accepted for healthcare services, hence the need for all persons resident in Ghana to link the NHIS and Ghana cards now. This according to them, is to enable a convenient means to allow all holders of one card, that is the Ghana Card to access healthcare.

SSNIT, TIN registration

The Ghana Card is also now required for Social Security and National Insurance Trust (SSNIT) and Tax Identification Number (TIN) registrations. This is important to improving the way of doing business with the Trust.

SIM Card registration:

The Ghana Card is required to register SIM cards. Without this, one cannot register their SIM cards.

Voters registration:

The Electoral Commission has indicated that the Ghana Card will soon become the sole ID for registration and compilation of the Voters Register for the next general elections in 2024.

Driver’s License Acquisition:

The Driver and Vehicle Licensing Authority (DVLA) requires an applicant’s Ghana Card PIN to be able to produce a license for the same. The PIN is captured on a holder’s driver’s license and vehicle registration documents.

Business Registration:

The Ghana Card is the most important document one needs to be able to register a business in the country. The Ghana Card among other things confirms the business owner’s identity and citizenship.

WA