South Africa is set for a major shake-up in public service delivery as Capitec, First National Bank (FNB) and Standard Bank partner with the Department of Home Affairs (DHA) to dramatically expand access to smart ID and passport services.
The initiative, announced by Home Affairs Minister Leon Schreiber, will scale the existing bank partnership from just 30 branches nationwide to 1,000 branches by 2029, with services also becoming available on banking apps. This blended model of physical and digital access marks a turning point in Home Affairs’ decade-long collaboration with the financial sector.
Capitec will lead the rollout, offering the service at 10 branches from October 2025, with plans to expand to 100 by early 2026. Crucially, the bank’s initial focus will be on communities with little or no DHA presence. Capitec CEO Graham Lee says the DHA’s recent modernisation makes seamless integration possible.
FNB and Standard Bank are also on board, with phased expansions planned. Industry insiders suggest that ABSA and Discovery Bank are likely to join soon, further boosting the programme’s reach.
Behind the scenes, Home Affairs has significantly upgraded its Online Verification Service (OVS), reducing error rates from over 50% to under 1%. This means citizens will be able to complete applications through banking apps with biometric verification — potentially applying from home and collecting their documents at a nearby branch.
The expansion supports the phasing out of the old Green ID book, widely regarded as the most fraud-prone identity document in Africa. Importantly, the initiative is funded entirely by the banks, ensuring no additional burden on taxpayers.
With the bold goal of reaching 1,000 service points by 2029, this public-private partnership is being hailed as the largest digital transformation in the DHA’s history, bringing IDs and passports closer to millions of South Africans.