{"id":645303,"date":"2026-05-05T08:58:22","date_gmt":"2026-05-05T06:58:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/?p=645303"},"modified":"2026-05-05T09:06:42","modified_gmt":"2026-05-05T07:06:42","slug":"digital-id-book-for-south-africa-here-are-the-proposed-new-rules","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/government\/645303-digital-id-book-for-south-africa-here-are-the-proposed-new-rules.html","title":{"rendered":"Digital ID Book for South Africa \u2014 here are the proposed new rules"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The Department of Home Affairs published draft amendments<\/a> to South Africa’s identification regulations on Monday outlining the issuance of digital identity credentials to South Africans.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This proposed digital ID will be an additional form of identity, established via biometric verification, and will be just as valid as a physical identity card or booklet.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Home affairs minister Leon Schreiber invited public comment on the proposed new regulations, with written submissions due on or before 7 June 2026.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

According to the gazette, Home Affairs wants to establish digital identity credentials as an alternative to identity cards to crack down on fraud and for use on the upcoming MyMzansi platform.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In the future, the MyMzansi platform<\/a> is expected to allow South Africans to apply for student bursaries, renew vehicle licences, and use all other existing online services through a single platform.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

During his 2026 State of the Nation Address, President Cyril Ramaphosa said that MyMzansi will “digitise driver’s licences, matric certificates, and services at the Master’s Office.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“Citizens will be able to fill out police statements online, and eligibility for SASSA grants can be tested remotely,” he said. It is expected to launch sometime after 2030.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Home Affairs explained in the gazette that it was rolling out digital identity credentials to modernise South Africa’s identification system and make service delivery more efficient.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

South Africans could use their digital identities to access government and private-sector services by simply scanning their faces.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Digital identities will be the cornerstone of the government’s plan to shift service delivery to online platforms, with MyMzansi as its main focus.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The platform will be the primary home for digital identities. Residents will be able to use their digital identities in the form of QR codes, NFC tags, or via Bluetooth.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A further security measure will tie credentials to a specific smartphone or tablet via “device binding,” a process where a person’s digital identity is linked to their specific device.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For example, if someone steals your MyMzansi login credentials, they will not be able to use them to access your account unless they have your device.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This will be further strengthened through biometric authentication. Digital identity credentials will consist of a facial biometric template and a cryptographic signature to ensure their authenticity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Rules for obtaining a digital ID<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

South Africans from the age of 16 will be able to apply for and receive a digital identity from Home Affairs branches or “premises of accredited trusted entities.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

They will require an existing proof of identity as recorded in the population register, such as a physical ID or a birth certificate, and a biometric liveness to capture their live biometric information.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

South Africans will also need a telephone number, an email address, proof of residence, and a mobile device to apply for and obtain a digital identity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The process will include facial biometric capture, fingerprint capture, and liveness detection, which shall be performed during enrolment and every verification.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Home Affairs will offer free in-person enrolment at its branches, and private-sector enrolment will include prescribed identity document fees.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Biometric information captured during the enrolment process will be stored in the population register in encrypted form.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Digital identity credentials will also have validity periods and must be renewed every 5 years from the date of issue or the most recent renewal date.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“The Director-General shall notify the holder of a digital identity credential through the MyMzansi application not less than 90 days before expiry,” the gazette indicated.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The renewal process will require an additional facial biometric verification, but more steps could be added in the future.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It further proposed that persons who seek to enrol with false particulars or fraudulent documents, or use another person’s credentials for their own, could face fines or imprisonment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Home Affairs stated that digital identification credentials are not compulsory for South Africans and do not affect the validity of physical identity documents.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“No person is compelled to obtain a digital identity credential in order to continue using a valid physical identity card.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\n\n\n

Draft regulations for the rollout of digital identity credentials<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
<\/object>54610 4-5 HomeAffairs<\/a>Download<\/a><\/div>\n\n\n\n
\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The Department of Home Affairs proposed rules for the rollout of digital identity credentials for all South Africans using biometric capture.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":341213,"featured_media":642327,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[18668],"tags":[6535,59118,1703,78048,101354],"class_list":["post-645303","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-government","tag-department-of-home-affairs","tag-digital-identity","tag-home-affairs","tag-leon-schreiber","tag-mymzansi"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/645303"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/341213"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=645303"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/645303\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":645319,"href":"https:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/645303\/revisions\/645319"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/642327"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=645303"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=645303"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=645303"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}