National Identification Number holders are now required to pay N15,000 to correct their dates of birth on the database of the National Identity Management Commission.
This was announced by NIMC Regional Coordinator, Mrs Funmi Opesanwo, on Wednesday at the commission’s office in the Alausa area of Lagos State.
Opesanwo noted that NIN holders are also required to pay a processing fee of N5,000 for card renewal or card replacement as well as an address modification fee of N500.
The regional coordinator noted that NIN enrolment is free but there are fees attached to card renewal, correction of date of birth, change of address and should not be interpreted as payment for NIN registration.
“For the date of birth correction, there is a processing fee of N15,000. For card renewal or card replacement, there is a processing fee of N5,000. For the modification of address or name, it is N500. So, people misconstrue this to mean that in NIMC they are asking them to pay money. No, those are for services,” Opesanwo stated.
The NIMC official noted that the fees are payable to the Treasury Single Account of the Federal Government. “For correction of date of birth, it is N15,000 and it is payable to the TSA,” she added.
However, some network subscribers on Wednesday complained that telcos have blocked their SIM cards.
They said the action was a result of the Federal Government’s directive for the Nigerian Communication Commission to order telecommunications companies to deactivate telephone lines of subscribers who failed to link their phones to their National Identity Number.
The Federal Government had said telcos subscribers with NIN have January 19 as a deadline to link their NIN with their SIM cards while subscribers without NIN have until February 9 to do so.
Reacting to the claims Opesanwo said: “When we came this morning, a lot of applicants complained that their SIM (cards) have been blocked and that is why we are experiencing this large number today.
“We are trying to manage the situation. Applicants have been seated and they came in for different services, so, there is no problem.
“We have to be mindful of the safety protocols and we cannot exceed the number of people, the capacity that we can take, we have to adhere to the guidelines.”