Jordan’s House of Representatives has passed amendments to the country’s civil status registration legislation making the Sanad mobile digital identity platform legally equivalent to the physical national ID card, with all government bodies and private sector entities required to accept it as valid identification.
The law defines digital ID as the electronic version of the national ID card, with full legal equivalence. Issuance is restricted to platforms approved by the Ministry of Digital Economy and Entrepreneurship — in practice, Sanad. The legislation takes effect once published in the official gazette.
For Sanad users, the parliamentary vote completes a long arc of incremental recognition. The app has moved from a convenience service to a formally mandated identity credential: Jordan added in-app digital ID activation and Apple Pay and Google Pay support, the banking sector formally adopted Sanad as valid customer identification, and the cabinet backed legal recognition for digital identity ahead of the parliamentary vote that has now completed the cycle.
Sanad uses iris biometrics supplied by IrisGuard. The app has been operational for government service delivery for several years and already covers a substantial share of Jordan’s public services catalogue and banking sector onboarding. Its legal enshrinement removes the optionality that previously allowed institutions to accept or reject the digital credential at their discretion.
Ministry officials have previously said that activating a Sanad identity remains voluntary for individual citizens. The mandate applies on the receiving side: banks, telecoms, and other regulated entities must now update their workflows to formally accommodate the Sanad credential alongside physical documents. Citizens who have not yet activated a Sanad identity will encounter digital verification gates across government services once the law is gazetted.
The legislation also introduces a digital mail address system requiring all citizens over 18 to register a physical address for formal government notifications. The two provisions were passed as a package following deliberations by Parliament’s Legal Committee.
Jordan’s move reflects a wider pattern in the Middle East and North Africa, where governments are converting digital identity pilots and voluntary platforms into legally mandated infrastructure. For Sanad specifically, the law transitions the app from a digital convenience layer into a statutory requirement — the foundation on which all future government and private-sector digital service delivery in Jordan is expected to build.
Sources: Biometric Update, Jordan News Agency (Petra)
–
By the Mobile ID World Editorial Team
