Government

100 new bank branches where South Africans can get a Smart ID and passport

Staff Writer

 ·22 Apr 2025

The Department of Home Affairs (DHA) has presented its Strategic Plan through to 2030, which includes ambitious targets for the rollout of home affairs services at bank branches.

The department has set a target of 1,000 bank branches equipped with the DHA’s live capture systems by the end of the 2027/28 financial year, 100 of which will be in 2025/26.

This is premised on the rollout of a new model of the live capture system, which the department hopes will accelerate the adoption of Smart IDs in the country.

As part of its 2025/26 plans, the DHA said that it wants to add 100 bank branches with live-capture technology starting in Q3.

It plans to add 40 bank branches between October and December 2025 and 60 branches between January and March 2026.

In the immediate term, the DHA will spend the next three months developing and integrating the systems into the various offices.

The plan is ambitious, considering South Africa has been frozen at around 30 bank branches during the perennially extended pilot programme.

Over the medium term, the department said it will roll out this live capture system to another 900 bank branches – 400 additional branches in 2026/27 and 500 branches in 2027/28.

“We are of the view that as we work with the current banks that are there and expand the footprint, we should be able to add this functionality by 1,000 bank branches,” the DHA said.

After that point, post 2028, the Department of Home Affairs has not set any further rollout targets.

An analysis of the FY2024 data from the banks shows that the major banks have a physical branch network of over 3,300 branches. However, Capitec has not joined the DHA pilot.

With a rollout to 1,000 branches, the DHA would have about 40% coverage among South African banks.

Currently only 30 bank branches available

Home Affairs’ ambitious targets will significantly increase the 30 bank branches nationwide offering Smart ID and passport services.

The number of branches available has remained fairly stable since the bank branch pilot programme was started in 2015.

The pilot is based on the eHome Affairs model, where South Africans can book appointments online, submit their personal details, and make payments digitally.

Afterwards, they visit a participating bank branch to have their biometric data, including fingerprints and photographs, captured.

The Department of Home Affairs is moving towards a new model, which would entail a fully digital process.

South Africans will apply for documentation, get validated on the system through facial recognition, and have their documents delivered to a selected address after payment.

However, this system will still require these biometrics and details to be captured, which is the thinking behind the rapid rollout of the live capture system to so many points of presence.

The DHA has been negotiating for years with the Banking Association of South Africa (BASA) regarding the rollout of the pilot and the expansion of services.

The DHA previously noted that it was ready to pull the trigger on 43 new bank branches to be added to the network once the deal is finalised.

A key point of contention has been system downtime and interruption of services, which could reflect poorly on the banks when they have no control over these systems.

The DHA has reportedly reached an agreement with BASA regarding these systems. Under the agreement, BASA will assist with integrating DHA services into banking platforms to expand its reach.

The department’s timelines now indicate that this rollout should start happening around October 2025.

These are the 30 bank branches currently available for DHA services