Upgrades for online driving licence renewals in South Africa

South Africa’s Department of Transport has some significant upgrades planned for the online licence renewal and vehicle registration system in the 2025/26 financial year.

Deputy Minister Mkhuleko Hlengwa presented his Budget Vote speech on Wednesday, 2 July 2025. In it, He said the Road Traffic Management Corporation (RTMC) will expand the services over the coming year.

“These platforms have significantly improved accessibility and efficiency, reducing queues at licensing centres and providing a more convenient service to our citizens,” said Hlengwa.

“In the year ahead, the RTMC will expand these services by onboarding at least four additional registration clients, ensuring broader access and impact.”

The deputy minister also said the RTMC will deploy Software-Defined Wide Area Network (SD-WAN) technology in the new financial year to support the growing digital ecosystem.

He said this will reduce reliance on copper connectivity and enhance networks’ performance, security, and resilience at licensing centres across South Africa.

“Furthermore, biometric technology will be integrated into critical business processes to strengthen identity verification and eliminate fraudulent activity,” said Hlengwa.

“The RTMC will also continue to roll out and enhance the Computerised Learner’s Licence Testing (CLLT) system and introduce a fully digitised driving licence testing process.”

He said the digitised processes will modernise the way in which driver competence is assessed in South Africa, to ensure a fair, secure, and efficient testing environment.

The RTMC’s online National Traffic Information System (eNatis) platform launched in October 2021, initially offering a portal for motorists to submit licence disc renewals.

It has since expanded to offer other services, including driving licence card renewals, learner’s licence test bookings, and damage reporting for motor vehicle accidents.

Hlengwa said that the RTMC’s system processed more than two million online licence renewals in the past financial year — a 56.4% increase from the number of renewals processed in 2023/24.

The eNatis system also processed 78,566 online registrations and 112,845 online change of ownership transactions.

One glaring problem

While upgrading the efficiency of the RTMC’s online systems will expand access to services like licence disc and driving licence renewals, there is a glaring issue.

South Africa’s sole driving licence printer is very old and prone to breakdowns, resulting in substantial card production backlogs.

The driving licence card printer most recently broke down on 5 February and returned to service on 8 May. During the outage, the production backlog peaked at around 747,000 cards.

According to the latest estimate from the Department of Transport, clearing the backlog will take four to six months.

However, there is good news. Transport Minister Barbara Creecy recently announced a plan to create a backup for the country’s only driving licence card printer in case it breaks down again.

To prevent further backlogs, the department has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the Department of Home Affairs-run Government Printing Works.

“To ensure we have a backup solution, we have signed an MOU with the Government Printing Works,” said Creecy.

“We expect that this backup solution will be able to print driver’s license cards within three months.”

The minister didn’t elaborate on what the backup solution entailed. However, several stakeholders have suggested that its smart ID printing capabilities mean it can also print driving licence cards.

The Department of Transport has been working to procure new driving licence printing machines for some time now.

In August 2024, it selected Idemia Identity and Security South Africa as the preferred bidder to procure the new printers. However, this hit a significant roadblock.

Shortly after the announcement, Creecy asked the Auditor General of South Africa (AGSA) to widen its audit into the tender process.

The AGSA found various irregularities surrounding Idemia’s appointment and said the department failed to follow tender procedures while adjudicating bids.

Despite the highlighted irregularities, Idemia told MyBroadband that it had won the contract legitimately and lawfully.

Creecy approached the courts to decide on a way forward, with the minister considering either cancelling or proceeding with the contract.

After receiving a legal opinion advising her to proceed with the contract, she received backlash from the Organisation Undoing Tax Abuse (Outa).

Outa stated that allowing the tender to proceed despite the AGSA’s findings would constitute a major governance failure.

Creecy has since confirmed that she hasn’t withdrawn the application for a declaratory order from the court, for which she is still awaiting the outcome.