Gauteng motorists no longer need new number plates

Gauteng’s Department of Roads and Transport has put its plans to introduce new number plates on hold due to technical limitations.

The new license plates were unveiled in June 2025, with plans to roll them out across Gauteng within six months.

The Department of Roads and Transport said the new plates have significant improvements over their predecessors, including tamper-proof decals and forensic QR codes.

The department also said this would allow the introduction of a smart number plate system, helping police combat vehicle theft and fraud.

The improvements were also meant to stop license plate cloning, a major issue across South Africa.

Cloning involves criminals making copies of existing license plates for their own cars, leaving innocent drivers with fines and criminal cases.

Victims of number plate cloning often report that it is a long and difficult process to dispute these cases, creating unnecessary stress.

Gauteng Premier Panyaza Lesufi said the new system would be a useful tool in fighting crime in the province.

“The province has launched a high-calibre weapon in the fight against criminality and restoring order,” he said.

“Those who are using fraudulent or duplicate number plates will have no space or time to drive on our roads.”

MEC of Roads and Transport in Gauteng, Kedibone Diale-Tlabela, also touted the unveiling as a major step forward for the province.

“By partnering with law enforcement agencies, metro police departments and the private sector, we are enhancing vehicle identification and traceability,” she said.

“These smart number plates will significantly reduce vehicle cloning, trafficking of stolen vehicles, and the use of falsified plates in criminal activities.”

While the province saw the new license plates as a win, many Gauteng residents raised concerns about the cost to car owners.

Many residents were also worried about the logistics of having every driver in the province buy new number plates in a short period of time.

On hold again

Since the new license plates were unveiled, their implementation date has been repeatedly pushed back and is now on hold.

Gauteng’s Department of Roads and Transport said this decision was due to technical limitations in the new system.

The department said there were several improvements which needed to be made to the system before it could be rolled out across the province.

These revelations have come after the province conducted a pilot test of the new system, installing the license plates on 300 cars in its fleet.

AfriForum welcomed the Department’s decision to pause the implementation, citing concerns over price-fixing by number plate manufacturers.

These concerns relate to three number plate manufacturers, who are currently involved in a tribunal by the Competition Commission.

It is alleged that the manufacturers have been illegally fixing product prices since 2023, placing undue pressure on consumers.

AfriForum spokesperson Louis Boshoff said Gauteng’s new license plates should not be implemented until this tribunal is complete.

“As long as the case is still pending, there can be no certainty that new number plates will be provided at fair prices,” he said.

In the past, AfriForum has threatened to take legal action against Gauteng’s Department of Roads and Transport if the new number plates are introduced before the tribunal is complete.

While the province did not appear to suspend the project’s implementation because of pressure from AfriForum, the group is still happy with the decision.

Diale-Tlabela said the number plate project has not been scrapped – rather, it has been placed on hold while the province makes improvements to the system.

She said once the issues identified by the pilot test have been addressed, the new system would be implemented across Gauteng.