Goodbye Home Affairs hell – we tested Smart ID and passport renewal at Discovery
I recently renewed my passport and ID at the Home Affairs branch in Discovery’s Sandton headquarters and was impressed with the service and quick turnaround time.
There are 30 bank branches where South Africans can apply for and receive their Smart IDs and passports, but if everything goes to plan, there will be even more as the government pushes to rid the public of ID books.
The eHomeAffairs initiative was first introduced in 2015 with the specific objective of phasing out the traditional green-barcoded ID books in favour of the more advanced Smart ID Card.
Through the eHome Affairs platform, South Africans can submit the necessary documentation and secure an appointment to have their biometrics recorded at a designated bank where they hold an account.
Over the course of the past eight years, there has been significant progress in the project.
Notably, Investec and Discovery Bank have joined the service.
I am a Discovery Bank customer, and numerous people have had previous positive experiences when using the eHomeAffairs route.
Considering this, I decided to test the process of renewing my passport and ID at Discvery’s Home Affairs branch.
On Monday (24 June 2024), I signed up for an eHomeAffairs profile for the first time and completed my passport and ID renewal application.
When I applied to renew my passport, I had to provide details such as my ID number, home address, my spouse’s information, and my preferred location for collection of THE FINISHED passport and ID.
After I submitted the form, I was prompted to choose my preferred branch to have my fingerprints, signature, and a new photo taken.
However, Discovery Bank has no brick-and-mortar branches and is therefore not an option on the eHomeAffairs online system.
Instead, Discovery Bank customers need to send an email to [email protected] with the application’s Reference Number and the time they’d like to come in.
I sent an email with my preferred day, and Discovery replied with a confirmation that a slot at 10:00 on Friday (28 June 2024) was booked.
When I arrived at Discovery’s Sandton branch, the DHA had a list with all the names and ID numbers of people with appointments on the day, and I did not have to present any documents other than my ID.
My biometrics, including fingerprints and a photo of my face, were captured in less than 10 minutes from my arrival at the branch.
I arrived at 09:55, five minutes before my booking, and a helpful bank employee pointed me to a dedicated room for smart ID and passport applications.
I was then instructed to sit and wait for my turn.
The DHA employee was friendly and professional and completed the process in less than five minutes.
This included scanning my thumb for a fingerprint, photographing my face, and signing twice on a digital signature pad. There was no paperwork whatsoever.
I was instructed to pay R600 for my passport and R140 for my ID at the front desk, which also included tap-to-pay.
The DHA employee who assisted me said I would be notified when my passport was ready for collection and reminded me to bring my ID along.
This whole process took 10 minutes. It must be noted that I was not greeted in a queue on arrival, but I was helped by three other individuals.
I received an SMS and email stating that my passport was ready for collection at 14:00 on Thursday afternoon (4 July 2024), four working days after my visit to the branch.
However, my ID took a bit longer. It took nine working days before I received another SMS and email stating that my ID was ready for collection on 11 July 2024.
This experience was much better and more efficient than a traditional Home Affairs branch, especially considering the queuing times and the number of walk-in citizens who had to get things sorted.
According to the Department of Home Affairs (DHA) website, the average waiting time for documents such as a passport only after biometrics are captured is three to eight weeks.
This means the process through the Home Affairs branch at Discovery was 80% more efficient at the very least.
Traditional Home Affairs branches also experience “systems are offline” often, which results in long queues and delayed processing of documents.
From 2019 to date, a parliamentary Q&A revealed that the DHA has lost over 17 years’ worth of working hours due to system downtime.
Given my experience with biometrics, I assumed the collection process would be a breeze, and it was.
It took another 10 minutes with others in the queue to collect both my passport and ID from the same location where I had biometrics captured.
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