Great news for everyone with a driver’s licence in South Africa

The South African government has officially announced that it will extend the driver’s licence card validity period from 5 to 10 years, two more years than previously announced.

Minister in the Presidency Khumbudzo Ntshavheni confirmed that the Cabinet approved the extension during a post-Cabinet briefing on Thursday 30 July 2026.

This extension applies to the following licence codes:

• A – Motorcycles
• A1 – Light motorcycles
• B – Light motor vehicles
• EB – Light motor vehicles pulling a trailer

Ntshavheni clarified that the extension is limited to these light vehicle categories, and that heavy transport and commercial vehicles will adhere to the current renewal cycle of two to five years.

Likewise, professional licences will continue to operate on a two-year renewal cycle.

“The change aligns with international best-practice, enhances administrative efficiency, reduces the frequency of renewal for motorists, and eases demand pressure within the licensing system,” Ntshavheni said.

Importantly, these changes have yet to take effect as they still require legislative amendments.

Until the amendments are gazetted, motorists will still be required to apply for a new licence if their current one expires during the current five-year validity period.

A long road to 10 year driver’s licence cards

The government previously announced its intention to extend the validity of South Africa’s driver’s licence cards to 10 years back in 2022.

At the time, former Transport Minister Fikile Mbalula announced that the Road Traffic Management Corporation (RTMC) would conduct a study to extend the licence card validity period to 10 years.

While the study was completed and submitted to Cabinet, the details were only made public under the tenure of Mbalula’s successor, Sindiswe Chikunga.

In 2024, it was revealed that the RTMC study supported an extension to an eight-year validity period.

However, Chikunga’s department backpedalled, providing bizarre reasons as to why the country could not adopt a longer licence card policy.

The department cited ‘driver fitness and health concerns,’ arguing that regular examinations were needed to detect communicable diseases and test motorists’ eyesight.

These excuses were dismissed by civil action groups, who claimed that the real reason the plans were scrapped was that the government would lose revenue from less frequent licence renewal applications.

The licence extension push was brought back to the table when Barbara Creecy took over as Transport Minister in 2024 under the Government of National Unity.

Creecy expressed her support to extend the validity period in November 2025. The department’s director-general, Mathabatha Mokonyana, confirmed the move in December.

Earlier this year, Creecy said that the department was still conducting a cost-benefit analysis and that it would be presented to Cabinet once complete.

The extension was officially placed into the department’s short- and medium-term goals in April 2026, with the plan to have the cabinet’s approval by the end of 2026/27 (March 2027).

This has been achieved ahead of schedule, so it remains to be seen if the rest of the department’s road map will also advance faster than previously anticipated.

Short-term goals (2026/27)

• June 2026 – Validity period submitted to the Minister
• September 2026 – Validity period submitted to the Shareholders’ Committee
• December 2026 – Validity period submitted to the relevant Forum of South African Directors-General (FOSAD) Clusters
• March 2027 – Validity period of the driving licence cards extended to 8 years approved for submission to Cabinet

Medium-term goals (2026/27-2028/29)

• 2026/27 – Validity period of the driving licence cards extended to 8 years approved for submission to Cabinet
• 2027/28 – Validity period of the driving licence cards extended to 8 years approved for submission to Parliament
• 2028/29 – None stated