BVN Expiry Date: How CBN Made U-Turn – Fact-Check Reveals

Contrary to recent declaration by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) concerning the Bank Verification Number (BVN)’s lifespan, the initial issuance by the apex bank was programmed to expire after 10 years.

This was contained in a Fact-Check conducted by PRNigeria after a viral video disclosed the expiry date, but for which the CBN later denied. Pointedly put, the CBN had on an post it made indicated the expiry date on its portal in 2015.

PRNigeria while ascertaining the truth in the claim, explained that a keyword search led to a page posted on the CBN portal in the year 2015 where Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) and answers regarding BVN were provided by the apex bank.

It noted that surprisingly, the page has been removed and could no longer be found on the CBN website.

However, PRNigeria was able to employ its Fact-Checking tools used for recovering deleted items to retrieve the online version and PDF document of the FAQs and answers on BVN as posted by the CBN on its website in 2015.

It further stated; “In the retrieved FAQs document under Question 12, the CBN stated categorically that the BVN would expire after 10 years of issuance thus, the customer must go back to his/her bank to re-enrol”.

But, in what appeared a complete turnaround, the CBN in a statement issued on Wednesday, May 10, 2023, declared that; “BVN Issued in Nigeria Has No Expiry Date.”

The CBN statement stated; “The attention of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has been drawn to reports suggesting that the Bank Verification Number (BVN) issued by the Bank in collaboration with the Nigeria Inter-Bank Settlement System (NIBSS) expires after a ten-year period.

“Contrary to these claims, we wish to clarify that the BVN issued in Nigeria has no expiry date. Once a customer’s biometrics have been captured and enrolled in the database of NIBSS, the BVN remains for life.

“However, the Regulatory Framework for BVN issued by the CBN in 2021 stipulates that customers can only change their records due to certain conditions spelt out in the document and after being cleared by relevant authorities.

“Therefore, we urge bank customers in the country, especially those whose biometrics have been captured by the system, to continue using their unique identifiers as they last their entire lifetime,” it said.

But, based on the data gathered by PRNigeria, it is clear and authenticated that the CBN once published a document on its website (which has been retracted presently) where it was explicitly stated that the BVN expires after 10 years of enrolment.

However, with the recent circular issued by CBN where it confirmed and reassured the validity of BVN even after a decade, the claim that the BVN expires after 10 years of issuance as widely circulated in the video, is therefore MISLEADING.