A parent or guardian can enrol a baby for a NIN at a NIMC enrolment centre. It is not a separate, more expensive process than an adult's.
Our general enrolment guide covers the standard process end to end. This one flags what differs when the person enrolling is an infant, and the NIN and NIMC hub rounds up the rest of our coverage.
Can a baby be enrolled?
Yes. NIMC's fee schedule lists one standard enrolment fee, free, and we found no separate age-based figure in it. That fee is what applies whether the record is for an adult or a baby.
Our piece on NIN for children generally covers questions that come up as a child grows older, past the newborn stage.
Some parents enrol a baby within the first weeks of birth, alongside registering the birth itself. Others wait. Neither choice affects the fee or the process, so timing is really about your own convenience.
What to bring
NIMC has not published one fixed document list for a baby's enrolment on the pages we checked. As a starting point, it helps to have:
- The baby's birth certificate or hospital notification of birth, if you have one.
- A parent or guardian's own identification.
- A phone number and email address for NIMC to use.
Confirm the exact list with your chosen centre before you travel, since what is accepted can vary between centres. A short phone call ahead is worth more than guessing.
What happens at the centre
A parent or guardian brings the baby in and provides the baby's bio-data. Standard NIN enrolment involves a biometric capture step; how that is carried out for an infant is worth asking your specific centre about in advance.
Bring something to occupy the baby, and expect the visit to take longer than a quick errand. A calm baby makes every part of the process easier.
Keep whatever transaction reference the centre gives you afterwards. You may need it to follow up before the NIN is generated.
What it costs
Enrolling a baby costs the same as enrolling an adult: free. Nobody should ask you to pay for a standard slot, for a baby or anyone else.
Check nimc.gov.ng/fees if a figure quoted to you does not match what you expect. Treat any request for payment at this stage as a reason to ask more questions.
After enrolment
NIMC does not publish a fixed timeline for turning an enrolment into a live NIN, for a baby's record or anyone else's. Check the record's status online once some time has passed.
Keep the baby's slip somewhere safe once it is issued, the same way you would your own. A drawer or folder used only for the household's identity documents makes it easier to find years later, when a school or another institution asks for it.
Common mistakes
- Assuming a baby's enrolment costs more. NIMC's fee schedule lists one fee, free, not a separate child rate.
- Turning up without confirming the centre's process for infants first. A quick call ahead can save a wasted trip.
- Misplacing the baby's transaction reference. You may need it to check progress later.
- Guessing at bio-data details. Use the exact spelling and date shown on the baby's birth certificate.
- Enrolling twice because the first visit "felt uncertain". Check the record's status before you assume you need to start again.
Most of these are simple to avoid once you know they matter. The rest comes down to patience: a baby's enrolment goes through the same process, and the same queue, as everyone else's.