Egyptian National ID Number Decoder
The 14-digit Egyptian national ID number encodes the century of birth, the date of birth, the governorate of registration, a serial whose last digit gives the gender, and a check digit. Enter a number to decode it.
What each digit of the Egyptian national ID number means
The number divides into five fixed-position fields.
| Digits | Field | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Century of birth | 2 = 1900-1999, 3 = 2000-2099. |
| 2-7 | Date of birth | Year, month and day as YYMMDD. |
| 8-9 | Governorate of registration | Code of the governorate where the birth was registered. |
| 10-13 | Serial | Separates same-day births in one governorate; digit 13 gives the gender: odd = male, even = female. |
| 14 | Check digit | Control digit whose algorithm is not officially published. |
Governorate codes in the national ID number
Digits 8 and 9 record the governorate where the birth was registered and stay the same when the holder moves. Code 88 marks births registered outside Egypt; codes 05-10, 20 and 30 are unassigned.
| Code | Governorate |
|---|---|
| 01 | Cairo |
| 02 | Alexandria |
| 03 | Port Said |
| 04 | Suez |
| 11 | Damietta |
| 12 | Dakahlia |
| 13 | Sharqia |
| 14 | Qalyubia |
| 15 | Kafr El Sheikh |
| 16 | Gharbia |
| 17 | Monufia |
| 18 | Beheira |
| 19 | Ismailia |
| 21 | Giza |
| 22 | Beni Suef |
| 23 | Faiyum |
| 24 | Minya |
| 25 | Asyut |
| 26 | Sohag |
| 27 | Qena |
| 28 | Aswan |
| 29 | Luxor |
| 31 | Red Sea |
| 32 | New Valley |
| 33 | Matruh |
| 34 | North Sinai |
| 35 | South Sinai |
| 88 | Born outside Egypt |
Checking an Egyptian national ID number
A structure check catches common input errors: a length other than 14 digits, a century digit other than 2 or 3, a date of birth that does not exist or lies in the future, and an unassigned governorate code.
Whether the number belongs to the person presenting the card is established by a check against the Civil Status Organization record. Entities addressed by FRA Decision 186 of 2024 run that check through the FRA's electronic linkage system.
VLens combines card capture with Arabic OCR, liveness detection, a face match to the card photo, the Civil Status check and an NTRA phone-ownership check in one flow. The national ID verification API page describes the response a business receives.
Frequently asked questions
How many digits are in an Egyptian national ID number?
Fourteen: one century digit, six digits for the date of birth, two for the governorate of registration, four for the serial and one check digit.
How do I find the date of birth in an Egyptian national ID number?
Digit 1 gives the century and digits 2-7 give the year, month and day. A number starting 2950514 belongs to a person born on 14 May 1995.
How do I find the governorate in an Egyptian national ID number?
Digits 8 and 9: 01 Cairo, 02 Alexandria, 21 Giza, 88 born outside Egypt. The full list is in the governorate code table.
Which digit of the Egyptian national ID gives the gender?
Digit 13: odd for male, even for female.
Is the national ID number sent or stored?
Decoding runs entirely in the browser. The number is not sent to any server and is not stored.
Does a valid structure prove the card is genuine?
A valid structure is a first filter. Whether the number was issued to the person is established by the Civil Status Organization record check and a match between the card and its holder.
Verify the card and its holder
The VLens API verifies the national ID card and its holder against the Civil Status Organization and NTRA records, under FRA Decision 140 of 2023.
National ID verification APIAPI documentation