NIRA Launches Mass Enrolment , Renewal Exercise

The National Identification and Registration Authority was established by the Registration of Persons Act, CAP. 332 in March 2015 to create, manage and maintain the National Identification Register, register citizens and allocate National Identification Numbers, among others. To date, the National Identification Register contains biographic and biometric records of 27.7 million Ugandans.

In August 2022, Cabinet approved the Mass Enrolment and renewal exercise to renew a total of 15.8 million cards that are expiring in June 2025. It is important to note that many have already expired. Another goal of the exercise is to register 17.2 million Ugandans.

On July 8^th 2024, the National Identification and Registration Authority signed a contract with Tahaluf Al Emarat Technical Solutions to:

2025. Procure 5665 Biometric registration kits which were fully delivered in January 2025 and distributed countrywide beginning February 2025.

2026. 2 Card production machines with a combined printing capacity of up to 100,000 laser engraved cards per day. This equipment was delivered in March 2025.

2027. Data center equipment including 5 racks, 80 servers, firewalls and other communication equipment. This was delivered, installed and configured beginning October 2024 to January 2025.

2028. A New National Security information system built on the modular open source identification platform (MOSIP) The first phase constituting of the following modules:-

2029. New Registration

2030. Renewal

• Change/Correction of Particulars

1. Replacement

2. Get First ID card for children who have attained 16years of age.

The New System provides for online Pre-registration of biographical data. Furthermore, the new system will capture the Iris as an additional biometric feature. Biometrics will only be taken at designated registration points by a NIRA Registration officer. The link for pre-registration will be provided on the NIRA website on May 27^th 2025. Furthermore, the new system integrates Birth and Death registration addressing the issue of fragmented systems.

Today, I am thrilled to announce that the National Identification and Registration Authority is ready to begin the pilot phase of the Mass Enrolment and Renewal exercise. The pilot phase will run from May 2^nd to May 26^th 2025 to allow the Electoral Commission complete the National Display exercise, a process critical to our democracy and sovereignty. The pilot phase began with the renewal of IDs of the Board of Directors of NIRA and the Top management of Ministry of Internal Affairs.

During the pilot phase, NIRA will register, renew and issue ID’s at selected sites with identified key stakeholders. Beginning May 27th 2025, the National Identification and Registration Authority will mobilize and deploy at the parish level within every District in the 146 administrative units of this country.

Citizens will be required to present the following requirements for each service:-

	SERVICE	Cost	REQUIREMENTS
1	Renewal	This service will be free of charge	a) During the application process an applicant shall present an Original or a Photocopy of the expired ID card or a valid police letter where the card is lost. b) During the issuance of the new card, a citizen shall present the expired card for invalidation or a valid police letter where the Original ID is lost or stolen. A renewal is not a change or correction of particulars, therefore, the new card will bear the biographic details of the old card.  Your NIN will not change.
2	New Registration for children below 18 years of age	This service will be free of charge	A photocopy of the National ID belonging to at least one parent.  In the absence of the parents identification, the applicant shall present the identification of; a) One of the four grandparents b) A Blood relative who is a direct descendant of any of the four grandparents A minor is expected to come to the registration point with an adult supporting the identification process.
3	New Registration of Adults above 18 years of Age	This service will be free of charge	For citizens of Uganda by birth, a photocopy of the National ID belonging to at least one parent.  In the absence of the parents identification, the applicant shall present the identification of; a) One of the four grandparents b) A Blood relative who is a direct descendant of any of the four grandparents c) A valid letter from the LC1 Chairman, parish chief or LC3 and endorsed by the GISO or DISO or RDC. NB: A Registration Officer may request additional information to establish citizenship. It is the duty of the applicant to present complete, accurate and reliable information in order to fast track this process. Citizens in other categories will present a valid certificate of citizenship from Directorate of Citizenship and Immigration Control.
4	Change / Correction of Particulars	UGX. 200,000/=	This service will only be offered at NIRA District offices and not at parish registration points given the legal requirements and documentation. A full list of documentation required to support this application is available on the NIRA website, www.nira.go.ug Change of particulars attracts a fee During the issuance of the new card, a citizen shall present the expired card for defacing or a valid police letter where the Original ID is lost or stolen
5	Replacement of a new lost ID	UGX. 50,000/=	In cases where you have lost the old ID, you are advised to renew. Replacement attracts a fee

Issuance of Cards

Upon successful application, the data submitted will be processed and a National ID issued for persons 16 years and above and a NIN allocated to new registrations of persons who have never registered before.

During the processing of information, an applicant may be required to provide additional information. In the first 3-5 months of the exercise, a card will be issued within 4 weeks of successful application. This is because of the volumes that have to be processed, subsequently this time is expected to reduce to 2 weeks. The Authority expects to renew all expired cards by the time the statutory Instrument extending the life of expired cards runs out on August 12^th 2025.

Cards will picked from the area indicated as a place of residence.

Citizens who already have a NIN, are advised not to carry out new registration. If they wish to change their particulars, they will be required to use the Change of Particulars service.

Citizenship Matters

Citizenship in the constitution of Uganda falls under the following categories

1926. Citizenship by Birth / Descent for tribes under schedule 3 of the Constitution and where ancestry existed in the borders of Uganda before 1^stFebruary 1926.

1927. Citizenship by naturalization granted by Directorate of Citizenship and Immigration Control

• Citizenship by registration granted by Directorate of Citizenship and Immigration Control

1. Dual Citizenship granted by Directorate of Citizenship and Immigration Control

2. Citizenship under Article 9 of the 1995 Constitution.

All Ugandan citizens enjoy the same privileges and rights and applicants are advised to select the correct category during the application process in which they fall to avoid delays.

At the parish level, NIRA teams will deploy 10 kits in a rotational manner. The District local authorities will agree on movement from parish to parish. Contact your District local authorities for the program.

All citizens are advised to provide complete accurate and reliable information as falsification of information is a crime punishable under law. In addition, all payments should be made in a bank and not to NIRA officers.