Legal Update – 23 September 2016

All residents to register with NIDA

  • All foreigners to register with NIDA
  • Must be 18+ and resident for 6 months
  • Carrying ID card mandatory

The National Identification Authority (NIDA) which was established in 2008 under the Registration and Identification of Persons Act of 1986 (R.E 2012) (the Act), has the mandate to register and issue identity cards to all Tanzanian citizens, legal residents and bona fide refugees.

NIDA has recently announced that all such residents who are in Tanzania for more than 6 months, which includes foreigners with resident and work permits and their children who are above the age of 18 years must register and be issued with ID cards.

This registration exercise began on 15 September and will end on 2 November 2016 with all such residents required to appear at the NIDA District Offices between 8am to 4pm on working days.

The Application fee is as follows:

  • Investors USD 100
  • Employees USD 50
  • Missionaries, Researchers, Students & Dependents USD 20

The Applicant is required to present the following original documents in person:

  • Passport of country of origin
  • Work permit
  • Residence permit
  • Bank slip
  • Duly completed Registration Form 2A (to be completed in black ink and photocopied forms are not accepted)

Applicants have also been advised not to wear white, blue, pink, grey or light blue clothes or caps as they deter quality of the photographs on the IDs.

Under section 14(3) of the Act, carrying of the identity card is mandatory.

Section 14(3) states:

The Registrar, Assistant Registrar and any Immigration Officer may, in the lawful discharge of the duties of his office under this Act, require any person purporting to have been registered under this Act, to produce his identity card for inspection and, if such person fails or refuse to produce his identity card or otherwise prove that he is registered under this Act he may be required to produce the identity card or other proof within such time, to such person and at such place as may be specified in writing by the registration officer.

For more information, please contact the NIDA district offices.