Overview
- The Department of Home Affairs issued 4,002,964 Smart ID cards in 2025, the highest annual total on record.
- Output rose 17% from 2024’s 3,427,468 cards and was roughly 1.3 million higher than the totals recorded in 2023 and 2022.
- Officials attribute the acceleration to digital upgrades at Home Affairs and the Government Printing Works, highlighted by stabilisation of the Online Verification Service and improved population register uptime.
- Minister Leon Schreiber says broader access to secure IDs enabled more people to open bank accounts, seek employment, and obtain social grants in 2025.
- The department says it is finalising a partnership with South Africa’s banking sector to let citizens apply for and collect Smart IDs at hundreds of additional bank branches nationwide.