Business
South Africa’s New Driving Licence Card Is Finally on the Way
A long wait at the licence office may finally be easing
If you have renewed a driving licence in South Africa over the past year, chances are you have felt the frustration. Long queues, temporary slips, and months of waiting became part of the daily conversation. Now, there is real movement behind the scenes, and it could change how licence cards are issued across the country.
The national Department of Transport has confirmed that a new driving licence card is on the way, even as the country’s long-delayed printer replacement remains tied up in legal processes.
Why the old system hit breaking point
South Africa has relied on a single driving licence card printing machine for years. When that machine broke down repeatedly between February and April 2025, the impact was immediate. By May, a backlog of more than 756,000 licence cards had piled up, leaving drivers stuck with temporary documents and rising anxiety.
While the backlog was steadily reduced and eventually cleared by December after more than two million cards were printed, the crisis exposed how fragile the system had become.
The court ruling that reset everything
In a major development, the High Court set aside the appointment of a new licence card printing machine tender. The court ordered the tender to be re-advertised within 30 days, effectively restarting the entire procurement process.
Transport Minister Barbara Creecy welcomed the ruling, describing it as confirmation of the department’s commitment to transparency. She had ordered an investigation into the tender soon after taking office, following the 2024 elections, prompted by concerns raised by the Auditor General about irregularities linked to the process.
The reset means a new permanent printing machine will take even longer to arrive.
The interim solution that changes the game
To prevent another licence card crisis, the court allowed the department to explore alternative printing methods while the tender process restarts.
This opened the door for collaboration with the Department of Home Affairs, which already produces passports and Smart ID cards. In July 2025, the two departments signed a memorandum of understanding that shifted licence card printing to the Government Printing Works.
For many South Africans, this was the most reassuring part of the announcement. The same facility trusted with secure identity documents would now handle driving licences.
A new card design gets security approval
One of the biggest questions was whether a new card could be produced using existing government infrastructure. That hurdle has now been cleared.
The State Security Agency has approved a prototype driving licence card that can be printed by Government Printing Works. Cabinet approval for the design is expected to follow soon, a critical step before full-scale rollout can begin.
This means the country is no longer stuck waiting for a single ageing machine to be replaced before modernising the licence card itself.
Systems talking to each other at last
Behind the scenes, technical progress is also being made. Successful testing has been completed on a secure network connection between the Road Traffic Management Corporation and Government Printing Works.
This connection allows licence data and printing files to be transferred safely, enabling smoother production and faster turnaround times once the interim system is fully active.
What South Africans are saying
On social media, reactions have been cautiously optimistic. Many drivers have welcomed the move to Home Affairs printing, noting that passport and Smart ID turnaround times have improved in recent years. Others remain sceptical, pointing out that licence delays have become a recurring issue regardless of who is in charge.
Still, there is a sense that this interim fix could finally bring stability to a system that has tested public patience for far too long.
A quiet but important shift
While headlines often focus on tenders and court rulings, the bigger story here is structural change. By using existing state printing capacity and approving a new card design, the government is stepping away from reliance on a single point of failure.
If the interim system holds, South Africans could see fewer backlogs, shorter waits, and a more reliable licence card process while the long-term tender runs its course.
For anyone due to renew soon, that alone feels like meaningful progress.
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Source: Business Tech
Featured Image: News24
