Department of Transport says licence ‘bottleneck’ will be cleared by end of April

The Department of Transport said it is pressing on with its aggressive approach to eradicating to the driving licence backlog. On Thursday, 24 March, the government said the backlog should be no more by the end of April.

DoT SAYS LICENCE BOTTLENECK WILL BE SORTED SOON

Transport spokesperson Collen Msibi said the department is on track with the production of the outstanding driving licence cards.

“The bottleneck experienced between November 2021 and January 2022 will be cleared off by April 2022,” said Msibi. However, the backlog caused by the COVID-19 pandemic grace period will take longer to sort out – it is expected to be cleared by September 2022.

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In the meantime, the following regulations will apply:

Motorists who apply to renew their license before 31 March 2022 will have the validity of their cards extended for a further three months – but only if they are in possession of their old cards.

“They must also have proof of fees paid for the application to renew in a form of a receipt,” said the spokesperson.

The three months extension also applies to motorists who applied to renew their licenses between 25 February and 31 March.

Msibi said if motorists apply after the expiry date they will be required to pay for a temporary driving license.

“Meanwhile, with the recent dispute by the driving schools having been resolved, the department is happy to report that Driver Licensing and Testing Centres (DLTCs) are now in full operation to assist the public,” said the spokesperson.