Warning over extended driving licence card validity in South Africa
While an extension to driving licence card validity periods in South Africa is back on the table, unions have warned that government revenue and jobs could be at risk.
Earlier this month, Transport Minister Barbara Creecy threw her weight behind increasing the validity of South African driving licence cards to eight years, up from the current five-year period.
Speaking to the National Council of Provinces (NCOP), Creecy said that extending the validity of licence cards was something the department views “in a favourable light”.
However, for specific categories of vehicles, such as buses, trucks and taxis, there may be a move to push for more frequent licence renewals every two years.
The extension of driving licence card validity has been a contentious issue for several years, with promises to review the period going back to former Transport Minister Fikile Mbalula’s time in office.
Mbalula announced in 2022 that the Road Traffic Management Corporation (RTMC) would conduct a study on extending the validity of the cards to 10 years.
While the study was completed and submitted to Cabinet, the details were only revealed during the shorter tenure of his successor, Sindisiwe Chikunga.
In 2024, it was revealed that the RTMC’s study proposed and supported an extension of driving licence card validity to eight years; however, Chikunga’s department completely walked back the plan.
At the time, Chikunga put forward absurd reasons for rejecting the extension, such as nonsensical ties to health and communicable diseases.
The department attempted to reason this by saying that “many” accidents on South African roads relate to infectious and other diseases, making regular eye tests crucial.
Critics widely panned this, immediately pegging the department’s move to scupper the plans and to reject the RTMC’s research as being financially motivated.
Driving licence card renewals are a significant source of revenue for the Driving Licence Card Account (DLCA), and by extending the validity, the entity would lose out on this money.
While previous leadership never admitted this, Creecy has now confirmed that this has been the main stumbling block.
Creecy back on board
When confronted by the department’s refusal to extend the validity of driving licence cards, Creecy said the department “has not refused”.
She explained that the department had done the research, and while it had found that driving licence card validity could theoretically be extended to eight years, there would be financial consequences.
“You would understand that there are entities in the department, like the driver’s licence card entity…they are dependent for their revenue stream on the renewal of driver’s licenses,” she said.
“So, what I asked is, can we understand the financial implications if we make this decision? I thought that was a prudent question that I needed to ask before I made the decision.”
Creecy stressed that it is her responsibility to fully understand the unintended consequences of such decisions, and she is waiting for a study on exactly that.
“Once I get (the study) and once I understand the implications, I will be able to make a decision, and I will do that,” she said.
Unions have also flagged the revenue concerns, despite being overall welcoming of a move to extend the validity period.
The Public Servants Association (PSA) said that it supports extending licence card validity, having even called for a 10-year validity period in the past.
The union said that the move would improve service delivery and reduce the administrative burden on the public, and it would ease congestion and pressure costs at various licensing centres.
Importantly, it would cut backlogs and wait times for the department, especially in the context of its over-reliance on one ageing and fault-prone printing machine.
However, the PSA said that the department needs to ensure that the financial implications of the move are addressed.
Further, it said that the department needs to be clearer on timelines and guarantee that any changes will not negatively impact employees in the licencing system.
“The matter must be speedily finalised, noting prolonged engagements, current backlogs, pressure faced by the DLCA, and citizens’ economic constraints,” it said.
The transport department previously revealed plans to propose a validity period extension to eight years in its annual performance plan for 2025/26, published in June 2025.
However, this has not yet happened.
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