Wheels24.co.za | Victory for motorists! All expired licences from March lockdown to August to be valid until Jan 2021

Victory for motorists! All expired licences from March lockdown to August to be valid until Jan 2021

2020-07-22 18:41

Janine Van der Post

A driver's licence. Image: Duncan Alfreds

• The RTMC has extended the grace period for all expired licences.
• The extension applies to all learners, driving licence cards and vehicle licence discs which expired from 26 March up to and including 31 August 2020.
•  Motor trade number licences grace period extended to end of November 2020.
• For more motoring stories, go to www.Wheels24.co.za

The Road Traffic Management Corporation has announced that all licences which have expired from 26 March and including up to the end of August, will be valid until the end of January 2021.

The announcement came on Wednesday, 22 July, after numerous calls to the Department of Transport for the grace period to be extended to 2021.

Wheels24's Janine Van der Post says: "This is such great news for all motorists. Everyone can now breathe a sigh of relief to have their legal road documents renewed. I am particularly happy for the elderly, and ill, who have been most concerned about the legality of their expired licences.

"I am also relieved for the thousands of learner licence holders who have been devastated about being turned away with no hope in sight, and who can now try to get those appointments booked online or at testing centres."

The RTMC said in a statement: "All learners licences, driving licence cards, temporary driving licences and professional driving permits that expired from 26 March up to 31 Aug 2020 are extended to 31 Jan 2021."

The new law published in the government gazette states the following:

"In these directions, the "Directions" means the directions on measures to address, prevent, and combat the spread of Covid-19: determination of extension for validity period of learners licences, driving licence cards, licence discs, professional driving permits and registrations of motor vehicles, published under government notice No.544, in Government Gazette No.43339 of 20 May 2020:

1. All learners licences, driving licence cards, temporary driving licences and professional driving permits that expired from 26 March up to 31 Aug 2020 are extended to 31 Jan 2021.

2. All motor vehicle licence discs, temporary permits, and roadworthy certificates that expired during the period that commenced from 26 March 2020 up to and including 31 May 2020 are deemed to be valid and their validity period is extended for a further grace period ending on 31 August 2020.

3. Motor trade number licences that expired during the period that commenced from 26 March 2020 up to and including 31 May 2020 are deemed to be valid and are extended for a further grace period ending on 30 November 2020."

Earlier in June, the RTMC announced: "All Learner's Licences, driver's licences, motor vehicle licence discs, temporary permits, roadworthy certificates and professional driving permits (PrDPs) that expired during the period that commenced from 26 March to 31 May, are deemed valid and their validity period is further extended with 90 days from 1 June to 31 August 2020". 

However, the AA launched a petition earlier in July calling for the validity period to be extended beyond 31 August to the end of January 2021 to give motorists enough time to renew their documents, and to provide some space to Driving Licence Testing Centres (DLTCs) to deal with backlogs, and prepare for new submissions. 

According to media reports on Friday morning (17 July) Transport Department Director-General, Alec Moemi, acknowledged the challenges at DLTCs. These include working with reduced staff and being intermittently shut down due to Covid-19. The Department of Transport has confirmed the decision to extend to the end of November.