The rumours that South Africa requires all drivers from Zimbabwe to hold an International Drivers Licence has been answered by Gavin Kelly, Technical & Operations Manager at the Road Freight Association of South Africa, who states:

Regarding the requirement for Zimbabwean drivers to hold an International Drivers Licence

The National Road Traffic ACT (NRTA), Act 93 of 1996 (As Amended) states the following in terms of PRESCRIBED territory:

Section 1 Definitions

‘Prescribed territory’ means – (a) the Kingdom of Lesotho, the Kingdom of Swaziland, the Republic of Angola, the Republic of Botswana, the Republic of Malawi, the Republic of Mozambique, the Republic of Namibia, the Republic of Zambia and the Republic of Zimbabwe;

Regulation 110: Conditions for acknowledgement and exchange of driving licence not issued in terms of Act, and international driving permit

1) Subject to sub-regulation (1A) and (3), a driving licence referred to in section 23 (1)(a) of the Act, issued while the holder of it was not permanently or ordinarily resident in the Republic, shall, for the period for, and subject to the conditions under which it was issued, be deemed to be a valid licence for the purposes of Chapter IV of the Act, if –

i)the licence has been issued in an official language of the Republic; or

ii)a certificate of authenticity or validity relating to the licence issued in an official language of the Republic by a competent authority, or a translation of that licence in such official language, is attached to it; and

b)such licence contains or has attached to it, a photograph and the signature of the licence holder.

The regulation refers to a driver’s licence and an international driving permit – you will note the wording “driving licence” and not “international permit” is used when validity is determined.

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