A total of 4,002,964 of these forms of identification were issued in 2025. It’s the highest rate of delivery in the department’s history.

“This milestone represents a 17% increase over the 3,427,468 smart IDs issued during 2024, which was itself a new record at the time,” said the home affairs minister spokesperson Carli van Wyk.

The department’s 2025 performance also far exceeded earlier years. Deliveries stand at about 1.3-million more than during both 2023 and 2022.

“The accelerated rollout of smart IDs is a cornerstone of the department’s medium-term development plan targets,” said Van Wyk. “The green bar-coded ID book, which the smart ID is intended to replace, has become a soft target for fraudsters and is estimated to be 500% more vulnerable to fraud than the smart ID.”

One of the most significant improvements contributing to the record performance has been the department’s investment in restoring and strengthening its online verification service. The system previously suffered from underfunding and misuse by some external users.

“Correcting this has led to higher uptime and better performance of the population register at home affairs offices, directly contributing to giving more South Africans access to smart IDs than ever before,” Van Wyk said.

Home affairs minister Dr Leon Schreiber said the milestone reflects the department’s commitment to digital transformation.

The department reiterated that smart IDs are significantly more secure than the green bar-coded ID books, which have long been vulnerable to fraud. As a result of the 2025 rollout, more than 4-million additional South Africans now have access to essential services.

Home affairs minister Dr Leon Schreiber. Photo: Facebook

“Over 4-million more people have now gained the ability to securely open a bank account, access employment, and obtain social grants in 2025,” Schreiber said.

Home affairs emphasised the accelerated rollout of smart IDs remains a cornerstone of its medium-term development plan, as it continues efforts to phase out the fraud-prone green bar-coded ID book and strengthen identity security nationwide.

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