Standard Bank has confirmed the phased roll-out of smart ID application and renewal services at select branches, with no convenience or logistics fees during the launch period.
The service will initially be available at the bank’s Rosebank, Maponya Mall and Westgate branches before scaling further. During the launch phase, clients will pay only the standard department of home affairs application fee of R140.
“Access to identity documents is foundational to participation in the economy,” said Marius le Roux, head of fraud operations, client experience and risk execution at Standard Bank. “Our focus is on removing friction for clients, not adding to it.”
The in-branch service allows clients to apply for or renew smart ID cards, complete payment and collect their IDs at the same branch. A digital application system is planned for a later phase.
Standard Bank has been part of the home affairs bank partnership model since its inception in 2016. Last August, the bank formally relaunched the partnership alongside FNB, committing to 20 branches initially and 300 over the following year. The latest announcement appears to mark the beginning of that broader roll-out.
The bank-branch model forms part of home affairs minister Leon Schreiber’s plan to expand smart ID services to more than a thousand bank branches nationally by 2029. Under Schreiber, the department has signed up most of the country’s major banks, including Capitec, FNB, Absa, Nedbank, Discovery Bank and Investec. Capitec, for its part, has committed to 10 branches initially, scaling to 100 and then 300.
Direct connection
The programme replaces an older model that required the costly duplication of home affairs staff and hardware inside bank branches. The new digital partnership connects bank infrastructure directly to home affairs’ backend systems, enabling faster processing without additional state resources on site.
However, the broader relationship between home affairs and the private sector has not been without friction. The department’s decision to hike the fee for accessing the national population register from as little as 15c to R10/transaction has prompted legal action from the Association of Communications and Technology, which represents major telecommunications operators.
Read: Bank branch smart ID and passport services set for big expansion
The lobby group has argued the increase will push up costs for banks, network operators and ultimately consumers. Schreiber has welcomed the court challenge, saying it will expose how businesses previously benefited from what he called unsustainably cheap access to the database.
Standard Bank said further details on branch availability and the broader roll-out will be communicated in the coming weeks. — © 2026 NewsCentral Media
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