Important announcement for people who need a new driver’s licence in South Africa

The Department of Transport (DoT) has announced that the country’s sole driver’s licence printing machine is back up and running.

The printer has been out of service since 5 February 2025, leading to a massive backlog of 747,748 cards.

“The National Department of Transport can confirm that the driving licence card printing machine has been fixed and operations have resumed,” said the DoT in an official statement.

Provincial backlogs

The DoT revealed that Gauteng has the largest backlog out of the nine provinces, with a total of 252,745 cards still to be printed.

This is followed by KwaZulu-Natal with 115,020 cards, and the Western Cape with 108,402.

The backlogs per province, as detailed by the DoT, are as follows:

The DoT said that working hours for staff members at the Driving Licence Card Account (DLCA) have been extended to ensure the backlog is worked through as quick as possible.

The DLCA, situated in Pretoria, is an entity under the DoT which is responsible for the production of the entire country’s cards.

“With the current catch-up plan, updates on the backlog reduction will be provided as and when significant progress is made,” said the DoT.

“However, the backlog reduction is also dependent on the number of orders being received on a daily basis.”

Motorists across the country are advised to keep their old cards handy even if they’re expired.

They should also apply for a temporary licence to avoid getting in trouble with law enforcement should they be pulled over.

You can drive with an expired licence card for up to three months before being eligible to be fined provided you can show proof that you applied for a new card before your current one expired.

However, if the card had already expired at the time of application for a replacement, you must also apply for a temporary driver’s licence at the same time and keep proof thereof in the vehicle.

A temporary licence is valid for six months, or until the new/replacement driving licence card is issued.

Should you be found without a valid driving licence card, you stand to receive hefty penalties.

In the municipalities of Tshwane and Johannesburg, operating a vehicle on a public road with an expired driving licence can net you a fine of R2,000 and impose three demerit points on your licence, as per the Administrative Adjudication of Road Traffic Offences Act.