In the past couple of days there has been an array of social media circulated rumours suggesting that the Department of Home affairs intends to do away with the green bar coded ID book in favour of the smart ID card from 1st April 2020.
This has caused a lot of frustration as many citizens do not afford the smart card, which costs R140.00. The Department of Home Affairs has confirmed that green ID books will not be discontinued anytime soon, saying recent reports circulating on social media are “fake news”.
The department tweeted: “Take note of fake news regarding the discontinuation of the green bar coded ID document. The department has not announced any plans to discontinue the green ID book. On previous rumours about the cancellation of the green bar coded ID book, Home Affairs Director General Mkuseli Apleniadvised
“There is no expiry date for the green bar coded ID. It is valid until the time we sort out everything we need to deal with [in issuing the smart ID for everyone]. Any updates regarding this will come directly from the department and not third party sources”
