Bank verification number, a biometric identification that is compulsory in the Nigerian banking system since 2014.

Without a bvn, you can’t have access your bank account, and right now banks are freezing accounts without a bvn.

When it comes to bank verification number, the question we have here is can bvn be changed.

This is a good question though I try to understand why some persons would want to change their bvn. Maybe they are scared because it was exposed to a third party or maybe due to another reason.

So right here I will explain if you can change your bank verification number or probably not, and if at all can a bvn be compromised.

Lets jump in.

can bvn be changed

Contents hide
1 Can bvn be changed?
1.1 1. When there’s a mismatch
1.2 2. When there’s an error with date of birth
1.3 3. Based on change of name
1.4 4. To change a phone number

Can bvn be changed?

The answer is no. Bvn cannot be changed except for bvn details.

Once you enrolled for a bvn, and which a bank verification number was issued to you, that’s final. The bvn is forever yours and yours alone.

Thinking that maybe later on the future that you can change your bvn, I’m sorry that is not possible.

However, you can change your bvn details.

Now the question is, what bvn details I’m talking about?

I’m actually talking about;

  1. Name
  2. Address
  3. Date of birth
  4. Phone number

You can make changes to these names on your bvn if there’s a need to do so.

But remember, you only have one opportunity to do this because you can’t just be changing your bvn details very often.

That isn’t possible.

Now let me explain the situation whereby there’s a need to change your bvn details.

1. When there’s a mismatch 

Sometimes there’s an issue of mismatch in bvn details especially bvn name and date of birth.

For example, your name is Okpara Uchenna Kizito which is what you have in your bank account. But on your bvn, it states Opara Uchenna Kizito.

There’s no way you can be able to link the bvn to your bank account because the letter K is omitted from your bvn name.

In this type of situation, you need to update your bvn and add the letter K to your bvn.

If you try to link your bvn to your bank account, it will display name mismatch, and which you need to correct the issue.

So all you have to do is to head over to the bank you enrolled for bvn, and request that you want to correct your bvn name because there’s a mismatch with your bvn name.

Here’s where the protocol lies,

To correct the bvn name mistake.

In my own case, I was asked to get a court affidavit, and a valid ID to make the changes.

And which I did.

I got the court affidavit, and a valid ID which happens to be my voters card, and filled a form to ammend my bvn details.

It didn’t end here as it took about two weeks before the mistake was corrected, and my bvn details (name) was changed.

But that was back in 2019 which I believe it no longer take that much anymore.

2. When there’s an error with date of birth

This again happened to me along with the bvn name error.

For example, the date of birth in your bank account is 25/05/1995, but on your bvn it states 25/06/1995.

If this happens, there’s no way you can link your bvn to your bank account simply because the names are not the same.

In this type of situation, you need to correct your date of birth on your bvn. And this requires you to get a court affidavit, and an ID and head over to the bank you enrolled your bvn to correct the mistake.

Remember, if you hear a valid ID, it means;

  1. A nin ID
  2. Voters card
  3. Drivers license
  4. International passport

ID

These are the IDs banks will accept from your, and any other ID is not valid. Don’t bother going with your school ID or work ID because it won’t be accepted.

Just meet with the bank customer service representative and explain the situation and the issue will be resolved for you.

3. Based on change of name

Here, you want to change your bvn name due to change of name. Banks will accept your application if you have the necessary requirements.

But remember, you can only do this once.

So in this type of situation, I recommend you to provide these details with you before going to the bank;

  1. A newspaper publication
  2. A court affidavit
  3. A valid ID

These three things are the requirements needed from you. And please remember, your ID must match the new name you’re bearing else the bank will not accept your application.

Once you have them ready with you, head over to the bank you enrolled your bvn and request for a change of name in your bvn.

However, this will also affect the name on your bank account so it won’t be an easy process but try to have the requirements ready and bank will help you out as long as you comply with them especially with the requirements needed from you.

4. To change a phone number

Sometimes one may decide to change the phone number linked to his or her bvn.

This only requires an ID from you, and you can change the phone number linked to your bvn.

However, some banks may require a court affidavit but in my own case it wasn’t necessary as only my ID was required from me.

If you want to change the phone number linked to your bvn, you also need to change the phone number associated with your bank account.

This is a quick round up to what I’m saying here;

  1. You cannot change your bvn.
  2. You can only change your bvn details like name, date of birth, phone number and address.
  3. To change your bvn details, these requirements are need from you depending on what you need to change; a valid ID, court affidavit, and a newspaper publication.
  4. You can only change your bvn details once, so make sure everything is correct.

Once again before I go, can bvn be changed? The answer is no. Bvn cannot be changed except for bvn details like names, date of birth, phone number and address.

Categorized in:

Bvn

Tagged in: