Instant AML and KYC compliance solution for Uganda

Smile ID's identity verification solutions empower businesses in Uganda to comply seamlessly with AML and KYC requirements. By providing instant customer identity verification and efficient user onboarding, we help companies ensure compliance with Uganda's KYC, AML, and data protection laws while streamlining their entire processes.

Country Overview

Bordered to the east by Kenya, Uganda’s growing population and relatively stable political climate make it an attractive market to do business in. The country is affiliated with the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) by being a member of the Eastern and Southern Africa Anti-Money Laundering Group (ESAAMLG). Businesses looking to onboard customers must adhere to the country’s KYC/AML requirements.

Regulatory Overview

KYC/AML regulations

AML/KYC regulations in Uganda are enforced by a number of regulators, including the

Bank of Uganda (BoU)
Capital Markets Authority (Uganda)
Ugandan Financial Intelligence Authority

The primary legislation governing KYC/AML in Uganda is the Anti-Money Laundering Act of 2013.

Partner with Smile ID to ensure your business stays compliant with AML/KYC regulations in Uganda.

Data protection regulations

In 2019, the Data Protection and Privacy Act was passed to regulate the processing of personal data in Uganda. The law empowered the National Information Technology Authority - Uganda (NITA-U) to enforce compliance.

Data controllers and processors are required to obtain users’ consent before processing and transferring personal data.

Accurately verify and onboard users in Uganda

Expand your business in Uganda with Smile ID. We help rapidly growing businesses maintain compliance, prevent fraud, and streamline their user verification processes effortlessly. Confidently verify Ugandan users and prevent fraud for seamless onboarding:

Access to 2 ID API authorities with over 29M+ ID records in Uganda.

Verify up to 6 ID documents, including National ID, Voter ID, Driver’s License, Passports, Registration Certificates, and more.

Verify up to 2 ID numbers, including the National ID number.

De-biased models ensure 99.8% accuracy across all African skin tones.

Image capture SDKs optimised for low bandwidth and compatible with all software versions as old as Android 5.0.

Conduct global AML Checks against over 1100 global sanctions, PEPs, and adverse media watchlists.

Enjoy enterprise-level security with ISO 27001 and SOC 2 Type 1 & 2 certifications.

Seamlessly verify up to 6 ID types in Uganda

We empower businesses with the flexibility to verify their user identity using any of the following ID documents. All we need is a document photo and a selfie.

Ugandan National Identity Card

Ugandan Identity Cards come in various forms, such as National IDs, Consular IDs, and Diplomat IDs. National IDs are crucial for citizens to access government services and participate in activities like voting. Consular IDs are issued to foreign nationals working in consular offices in Uganda, while Diplomat IDs are for diplomats representing foreign governments.

Ugandan Drivers License

The Ugandan Drivers License is a mandatory document for individuals to legally operate vehicles within the country. It contains essential information about the driver, including their name, address, date of birth, and license class. This license ensures that drivers meet the necessary qualifications and abide by road safety regulations.

Ugandan Passport

The Ugandan Passport is essential for international travel, serving as proof of citizenship and allowing Ugandan citizens to enter other countries legally. It comes in different types, such as diplomatic and ordinary passports, each with specific privileges and usage based on the traveller's status and purpose of travel.

Ugandan Resident ID

Ugandan Resident IDs include documents like Refugee IDs, Residency permits, and Residency cards. These IDs are issued to individuals residing in Uganda for various reasons, such as refugees seeking asylum or foreign nationals with residency permits. They provide legal status and identification within the country.

Verify up to 2 ID numbers in Uganda

Our solution empowers businesses to verify Ugandan ID numbers directly from government databases

Verify Ugandans using ID documents

Verifying users with ID documents and biometric face matching is one of the most reliable ways to determine a user's true identity. Our ID document verification solution checks that an ID document is authentic, accurately transcribes the text on the document and compares a user-submitted selfie to the document image.

Transcribes document text with 96% accuracy

Checks for accurate format

Identifies tampered and forged documents

Verifies security features

Scan your document

Our image capture tools guide users to take clear photos even with older devices.

Smile for a selfie

Ensure the real user is behind the camera with a smile to test for liveness.

Get real-time results

In a few seconds, you will confirm the document is authentic and belongs to the user behind the camera.

Comprehensive Identity verification (KYC/AML) solution in one place

Smile ID provides multiple options to verify and onboard your customers:

Document Verification: Verify over 8500 documents across 220 countries globally (including Uganda) with 96% OCR accuracy.
Government Check: Utilise our Enhanced & Biometric KYC products to verify customer information against 2 Ugandan ID authority databases, accessing up to 29M+ ID records in Uganda.
Enhanced Document Verification: Add an extra layer of security with our enhanced document verification solution which combines government checks with document verification when onboarding customers.

Smile Links: Flexible, no-code option for creating customised user verification flows

SDKs: iOs, Android, Hosted Web, Flutter, REACT Native

Server-to-server libraries: Ruby, Java, PHP, Python, node.js

REST API

Instant AML and KYC compliance solution for Uganda

Country Overview