New grace period for vehicle licence renewals
The decision to extend the licence validity period will give motorists some breathing space in terms of renewals, said the Automobile Association (AA).
The Road Traffic Management Corporation (RTMC) on Wednesday afternoon announced that the validity period of vehicle licences which expired between 26 March and 31 August, has been extended to the end of January 2021.
According to the new directive issued, all learner driver licences, driving licence cards, temporary driving licences and professional driving permits that expire during the period that commenced from 26 March 2020 up to and including 31 August 2020, are deemed to be valid and their validity period is extended for a further grace period ending 31 January 2021.
BREAKING: 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 pic.twitter.com/Qi7qchMVEE
— Road Traffic Management Corporation (@TrafficRTMC) July 22, 2020
Vehicle licence discs, temporary permits and roadworthy certificates that expire during the period that commenced from 26 March 2020 up to an including 31 May 2020 are valid until 31 August. and motor trade number licences that expired during the same period are valid until 30 November 2020.
In a statement , the association says they launched a petition a little under two weeks ago urging the government to extend the validity period of licences given the problems with renewals at Driving Licence Testing Centres (DLTCs), and are elated at the move by RTMC and the government to extend the validity period of all licences.
“It’s great news for motorists who have been worried about being legal on the road in the face of mounting backlogs with renewals. We applaud the government and the RTMC for making this decision which, ultimately, is the right way forward,” says Willem Groenewald, CEO of the AA in a statement on Thursday.
He added that the tens of thousands of concerned South Africans who signed the online petition urged government to extend the period and he thanked them for being active citizens and for playing their role.
“We trust government will monitor the situation with renewals closely and consider further extensions in the new year should the need arise. We believe much can be done between now and the end of January to clear backlogs and to ensure everyone is accommodated fairly,” Groenewald says.
He concludes that the extension will give motorists some breathing space in terms of renewals. “Motorists must however, not waste the opportunity to and get their licences renewed sooner rather than later.”
