Fresh setback hits driving licence renewals in South Africa
South Africans planning to renew their driving licences in 2025 may be in for a tough time. Here’s what’s going on…
If you’re planning to renew your driving licence this year, you may face significant delays.
Business Tech reports that South Africa’s only driving licence card printer has been out of service since January.
According to the publication, sources within the Department of Transport confirmed that the machine frequently breaks down and has remained non-operational for months. This ongoing issue has led to a mounting backlog, with very few, if any, licence cards issued so far in 2025.
South Africa’s 26-year-old printer
The machine is also reported to be a shocking 26-year’s-old, and has had a total of 159 breakdowns in its lifetime.
Speaking to MyBroadband, Department of Transport spokesperson Collen Msibi said that it could take several weeks to repair the machine
“The Driving Licence Card Account (DLCA) is liaising with the sole supplier in France to repair equipment that has malfunctioned and resulted in the machine breakdown,” Msibi said, as per MyBroadband.
“The Department is exploring various interim solutions to sustain the operations of the current machine, given its age.” Msibi added.