• The Department of Transport has revealed a clearer picture of what the incoming license plates for Gauteng will look like.
• The plates will include a scannable QR code and a tamper-proof decal to crack down on fraudulent plates for criminal cars.
• Gauteng is planning a general rollout of the new plates by the end of 2025.

Gauteng has run out of new numbers for vehicle license plates, but that’s okay because it is looking to implement a new tech-enabled license plate system that the government hopes will crack down on crime.

According to a new government gazette from Minister of Transport Barbara Creecy, the incoming license plates for Gauteng will feature two distinct features that will, hopefully, decrease the prevalence of fake license plates and other identifiers being used in the province.

The new Gauteng license plates

The department has finally revealed what the new license plates will look like after working on them and drafting different mockups for a year.

The new plates are designed to be tamper-proof, with new features including a QR code and special decal that will “self-destruct” when attempts are made to remove it. The Gauteng Provincial Government says the new plate designs will “prevent cloning, enhance safety, and establish accountability from manufacturers and retailers in the value chain.”

“The operability of the current South African number plate is prone to abuse by unregistered number plate manufacturers. Equally, the system in its current form is also taken advantage of by criminals who clone vehicles and commit other forms of crime,” the department said earlier this year.

Scanning the QR code will link to an online database of vehicle information, as well as include the mark of the manufacturer so that the plates can be traced back to where they were made.

The self-destructing decal is SANS 1116-compliant, which means it will adhere to all normal number plate rules such as positioning, what material the plate is made of and how legible what is written on it must be.

Other differences include the South African flag on the top left of the plate, a black dividing line between the decal, the QR code and the “ZA” insignia, the word ‘Gauteng’ on the top centre of the plate and the provincial coat of arms emblazoned between the final number and the ‘GP’ signifier.

Drivers were reminded to begin applying for new plates as of April this year. The provincial government is targeting the end of 2025 for a general rollout, according to TopAuto, citing local officials.

These plates will then be in circulation until at least 2038 when the number codes are expected to finish and new plates will then have to be made. This gives about 13 years for the provincial government to establish a new design.

Additionally, the new 2025 design is expected to be rolled out across all provinces in the near future, with the obvious exception being the Gauteng differentiators that will be replaced with local provincial ones.