Smart ID rollout progress reflects accelerated digital transformation at Home Affairs offices nationwide. Picture Credit: polity.org.za
By Aisha Zardad
Johannesburg — The Department of Home Affairs (DHA) has issued a record 4 002 964 Smart ID cards in 2025, marking the highest annual delivery rate since the Smart ID system was introduced, officials said.
The figure represents a 17 % increase from the 3 427 468 Smart IDs issued in 2024, which was itself a record year, and is roughly 1.3 million more than the total issued in 2023 and 2022 each.
Home Affairs described the achievement as a milestone in its ongoing “Home Affairs @ home” digital transformation initiative, aimed at improving service access and efficiency through technology upgrades.
In a statement, the department said investments in systems and infrastructure — particularly the repair and stabilisation of the Online Verification Service (OVS) — significantly improved system uptime and the performance of the population register at offices nationwide, enabling more South Africans to apply for and collect Smart IDs.
Minister of Home Affairs Dr Leon Schreiber said the record reflects the department’s commitment to widening access to essential identity services.
“The milestone of delivering over four million Smart IDs in a calendar year for the very first time demonstrates how our commitment to digital transformation is expanding inclusion and access at a scale never seen before,” Schreiber said.
Schreiber highlighted the security and socio-economic benefits of the Smart ID, saying it is key to reducing fraud and expanding opportunities.
“Smart IDs are vastly more secure than the fraud-prone green barcoded ID book. Thanks to the ongoing digital transformation of Home Affairs, over four million more people gained the ability to securely open a bank account, access employment, and obtain social grants in 2025,” he said.
The department said the older green barcoded ID book remains significantly vulnerable to fraud, estimating it to be about 500 % more susceptible to misuse than the Smart ID.
Home Affairs has pointed to improved coordination with the Government Printing Works (GPW) — which manufactures the cards — and the OVS repairs as critical to the improved performance, noting that underfunding and past misuse had previously hampered the system.
Looking ahead, the department is preparing to expand access further through a digital partnership with the banking sector that will allow citizens to apply for and collect Smart IDs at hundreds more bank branches nationwide.
The achievement underscores a broader push within the Home Affairs portfolio to modernise services and reduce backlogs, with senior leadership describing the milestone as part of a sustained reform trajectory that aims to strengthen service delivery and inclusion for all eligible South Africans.
