The Department of Home Affairs has issued an urgent appeal to citizens to replace lost or damaged identity documents ahead of the upcoming local government elections.

To prevent queues at standard offices, the department is directing citizens to local Home Affairs offices and the expanded network of more than 450 participating bank branches nationwide.

Additionally, an appeal has been made to individuals who have already applied for their IDs but have not yet collected them to do so immediately.

To streamline the process, the department advised citizens to visit the official portal at myhomeaffairsonline.dha.gov.za to locate their nearest participating bank branch.

The department is also calling on South Africans who already possess valid identification to act as community ambassadors.

Citizens are encouraged to urge family members, friends, and colleagues who still rely on older formats or do not have a Smart ID card to apply and collect their documents well before election day.

Home Affairs Minister Leon Schreiber emphasised that democratic expression relies fundamentally on this single document.

"A valid ID document holds the key to democratic participation in the upcoming elections," Schreiber stated.

The department has dramatically increased its capacity to serve the public by rolling out digitalised Smart ID services across more than 450 bank branches in a span of just five months.

This aggressive expansion forms part of broader efforts to modernise the department's infrastructure and make routine documentation highly accessible through secure corporate partnerships.

“I call upon South Africans to make use of our vastly improved services to apply for — and collect — their IDs without delay,” Schreiber added.