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3 clusters · 7 sources · 25 days · First seen · Last updated

South Africa identity document transition

Overview

South Africa is transitioning from traditional green barcoded identity booklets to smart ID cards to combat widespread fraud. Home Affairs Minister Leon Schreiber has described the green ID book as ‘the most forged document in Africa,’ noting that tampering with physical photographs results in annual losses of billions for the country.

The department has established a firm timeline: production of the traditional green identity document will officially cease on March 31, 2027. Following a 12-month transition period, the green ID books will no longer be recognized, effective March 31, 2028. This deadline affects approximately 14.7 million citizens and permanent residents.

To meet this target, the department must significantly increase its processing speed. While Home Affairs has processed 1.3 million upgrades over the last six months—averaging 217,000 per month—it needs to reach roughly 855,000 upgrades per month to meet the 2028 deadline.

To support this digital transformation, the department is expanding access to smart ID services through the ‘HomeAffairs@Home’ scheme and partnerships with banks. While over 515 bank branches currently offer biometric replacement services, with Capitec having processed over half a million applications, there are plans to expand to more than 1,000 service points by the end of 2026. The initiative aims to ensure all eligible individuals, including naturalized citizens, permanent residents, and South Africans living abroad, can obtain the new cards before the phase-out.

Entities

South Africa · Department of Home Affairs · Leon Schreiber · Government Printing Works · Thulani Mavuso

Timeline

  1. [POLITICS] 2 sources
    South Africa to phase out green ID books by March 2028

    South Africa's Department of Home Affairs must quadruple its monthly ID upgrade rate to phase out green ID books by March 2028, affecting 14.7 million people.

  2. [POLITICS] 2 sources
    South Africa to phase out green identity books by 2027

    South Africa will stop producing green identity books on March 31, 2027, transitioning to Smart ID cards to improve security and reduce fraud for all eligible citizens and residents.

  3. [POLITICS] 5 sources
    South Africa to phase out green ID books within two years

    South Africa is phasing out green barcoded ID books in favor of smart ID cards, with the old documents potentially becoming invalid within two years to combat widespread document fraud.

Sources

capetownetc.com · ghanamma.com · nowinsa.co.za · sapeople.com · thebulletin.co.za · thekasiboy.co.za · thesouthafrican.com

This summary has been updated 1 time: see revision history