The National Identification and Registration Authority (NIRA) has renewed more than 13.3 million national identity cards and registered over 6.1 million first-time applicants under the ongoing nationwide mass enrolment and renewal exercise, officials have said.
Speaking during the joint weekly security media briefing at Police headquarters in Naguru on December 29, 2025, NIRA Registrar Claire Ollama said the exercise, which started on April 1, 2025, had exceeded initial projections, prompting authorities to extend the deadline.
“The six months ended on November 8, 2025, but because demand remained high, the board and management of NIRA, together with the Ministry of Internal Affairs, found it plausible to extend this project for a further three months,” Ollama said.
The mass enrolment and renewal exercise will now run until February 8, 2026.
Significant progress
Ollama said NIRA had so far registered 6,152,753 Ugandans who were accessing national identification services for the first time, while 13,365,388 national IDs had been renewed.
She added that 636,942 first-time national ID cards had already been produced and issued to applicants across the country.
In addition, NIRA has processed 32,351 changes of particulars and migrated 21,463,874 records from the old identification system to the new one.
“These figures reflect great progress and demonstrate that Ugandans increasingly appreciate the importance of having a legal identity,” Ollama said.
Children registration pushed
With schools closed for the holidays, NIRA has called on parents and guardians to take advantage of the break to register children for National Identification Numbers (NINs), noting that the service is free of charge.
“This holiday, every child is at home. We are calling on every citizen to choose to enrol their children during this period,” Ollama said.
She clarified that registering a child does not require the presence of a biological parent. “Registering a child does not require a physical parent. A blood relative is legally accepted to help a child access this service,” she explained.
Applicants are required to fill in Form 7, available on the NIRA website, and present it at any NIRA registration centre together with the child.
No fees for children
Ollama also addressed public confusion over fees, stressing that changesto particulars for children below 18 years are free. “There has been confusion that the Shs200,000 applies to everybody. No. It applies to a cardholder, not a child,” she said.
She added that children are not required to swear affidavits when applying for registration or a change of particulars. “The child does not swear an affidavit. You only fill the form and approach a registration centre,” Ollama said.
Foundlings protected by law
NIRA further reassured the public about the registration of foundlings, saying the Constitution presumes any child found in Uganda below the age of five, whose parents are unknown, to be a citizen by birth.
Ollama said such registrations are supported by documentation, including police reports, care or placement orders, probation or child welfare reports, and other official records.
Deadline reminder
NIRA urged Ugandans who are yet to register or renew their national identity cards to do so before the February 8, 2026, deadline, noting that compliance with the exercise is a legal requirement.
Authorities also appealed for patience from applicants awaiting their cards, assuring the public that production and issuance of national IDs is ongoing.
