Civil rights group Afriforum is set to challenge the five-year validity period of South African driver’s licence cards in the Pretoria High Court in August 2023.
Afriforum heads to court over driver’s licence renewal period
In an interview with Newzroom Afrika, Ernst van Zyl, a spokesperson for Afriforum, argued that the current five-year expiry period is unconstitutional and is confident it will win the case.
Afriforum will appear in the Pretoria High Court on 7 and 8 August 2023 to challenge the validity period of driving licences. If successful, the organisation hopes to secure a declaratory order stating that the five-year validity period of driving licences is unconstitutional and that all fines issued for expired licences are invalid.
In South Africa, drivers are required to renew their driving licence cards every five years. The National Road Traffic Act and regulations do not explicitly state that it is a crime to drive with an expired driver’s licence card, nor do they prescribe any fine, penalty, or sanction for doing so.
However, it is generally accepted that a valid driver’s licence card is required to operate a motor vehicle on South African roads.
There are currently two civil action groups, Afriforum and the Organisation Undoing Tax Abuse (Outa), that are advocating for an extension of the validity period for driving licence cards in South Africa.
Van Zyl explained that Afriforum’s application rests on several legal and practical grounds. From a legal perspective, the National Road Traffic Act and regulations are too vague to be enforceable. The legislation does not even prescribe any fine, penalty, or sanction for driving with an expired driver’s licence card.
Afriforum’s point is disputed by the Organisation Undoing Tax Abuse (Outa), which is also fighting to extend driving licence card validity periods.
However, Outa disagrees with Afriforum, stating that the intention was to create a process for a driving licence card as proof that you have a licence, to be renewed every five years.
Outa contends that the cards should be valid for ten years, as it would lower the administrative burden on road traffic departments that have to handle renewals.
The group looked at licences in 35 countries and found the average validity was 8.5 years.
Former transport minister Fikile Mbalula revealed in October 2022 that he would be proposing a driver’s licence validity period extension to President Cyril Ramaphosa’s cabinet.
He proposed extending it to eight years but not much else has been heard about it since. Mbalula no longer serves as Transport Minister. He exited the role after he was elected ANC Secretary-General. Lydia Sindisiwe Chikunga now serves as Minister of Transport.