Gauteng’s long-awaited new number plates recently made their debut at a pilot launch event at the Nasrec Expo Centre in Soweto on 5 June 2025.
The event, held by the Gauteng Provincial Government, gave the public their first look at the new plates before they enter a new pilot phase.
The plates will be used on government-owned vehicles operated by G-Fleet Management over the next six months.
Gauteng Premier Panyaza Lesufi outlined at the event that the new plates will help combat vehicle theft, fraud, and cloning while empowering law enforcement.
“We are letting go of the old ways of fighting crime and introducing new ideas in this fight,” he said.
“With the help of the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), we are now deploying a digital system that ensures we are able to account for every vehicle on our public roads.”
He went on to note that those using fraudulent or duplicate plates will have no space or time to drive on the roads once the new plates fully roll out.
This event and the pilot come over two months after the intended completion date of the test plates and over two and a half years after Lesufi first announced the plan.
Lesufi has also indicated that every car-owner will need to re-register and get a new registration number, with anyone spending 30 consecutive days in Gauteng requiring registration for their car.
The current registration fee for a new vehicle in Gauteng is R216, with the application for a new motor trade plate number coming to R120.
A new license disc will be needed along with the plate, costing a minimum of R408 and an extra R72 for the Road Traffic Management Corporation’s administration fee.
The actual price of current plates also varies, with online figures ranging from R400 to R500; however, given the features the new plates boast, they will likely be more expensive.
In conjunction with the other costs, motorists are looking at over R1,000 to shift over to the new plates.
Features and new look
The new, tamper-proof number plates are designed to prevent cloning, enhance safety, and establish accountability from manufacturers and retailers in the value chain.
Enabling this is a QR code on each plate that links to an online vehicle information database and a producer mark to ensure they can be traced to the manufacturer.
Each plate also has a “self-destruct” decal, bringing them into compliance with the SANS 1116.
This decal is designed to tear and deform should any attempt be made to remove it from one vehicle and attach it to another.
The provincial government additionally stated that the new plates would assist with revenue collection, regulation of roadworthiness and insurance, and provide data for planning and policymaking.
In terms of physical design, the new number plates differ somewhat from current plates.
The new plates will retain the current two-letter, two-number, two-letter format for private vehicles, with the Gauteng Department of Transport confirming this alphanumeric configuration will persist until it’s exhausted – estimated to be around 2038.
There has been no change to the font used for the characters either.
New additions to the plate include a South African flag and the ZA UN country code on the top left of the plate, separated from the number by a vertical line.
A province name at the top centre and a provincial emblem between the license number and “GP” classifiers have also been added.
Gauteng number plate unveiling
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