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More than 1 million people get Smart IDs at banks

Published

The department of home affairs said 1,002,773 citizens used its Home Affairs @home service to apply for replacement Smart ID cards at participating bank branches. The department says an application takes about five minutes on average.

The department plans to extend the service to passport applications, first-time Smart ID applications and home delivery of documents. Home Affairs Minister Leon Schreiber said these services will be available at more than 1,000 bank branches within a matter of months.

Schreiber said the milestone shows the public is willing to embrace digital public services. He said the reforms improve security, reduce queues and paperwork, and combat identity theft.

Home affairs spokesperson Carli van Wyk said the initiative cuts long queues and improves security and efficiency. She said it removes paperwork and manual steps that could create chances for corruption and manipulation.

The department said 14.7-million green bar-coded identity books are still in circulation. It will stop producing them on 31 March 2027 and will withdraw them as valid identification on 31 March 2028.

Key facts

Who
Leon Schreiber (Home affairs minister); Carli van Wyk (Home affairs spokesperson); Department of Home Affairs (government department announcing the figures)
What
The department of home affairs said 1,002,773 citizens had used its Home Affairs @home service to apply for replacement Smart ID cards at participating bank branches. The department plans to extend the service to passport applications, first-time Smart ID applications and home delivery of documents at more than 1,000 bank branches.
When
26 October 2026
Where
South Africa
Status
Reported

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