How To Renew NPO Certificate In South Africa

If yours is a non-profit organization and is not part of government, you can apply for registration. You can submit your non-profit organization (NPO) application at your nearest provincial  social development office.

NPOs include trusts, companies or other associations of persons established for a public purpose.

Registering your NPO is beneficial because its certificate:

  • improves your credibility and funding opportunities
  • allows your organisation to open a bank account
  • helps your organisation with tax incentives.

To register, you must be one of the following:

  • non-governmental organisation (NGO)
  • community-based organisation (CBO)
  • faith-based organisation (FBO).

What you should do

  1. Submit the completed NPO application form at your nearest provincial social development office together with two copies of the organisation’s founding documents:
    • Trust – Deeds of trust and letter of authorisation from the courts
    • Section 21 – Certificate of incorporation and memorandum and articles of association
    • Voluntary Association – Constitution
    • The founding documents of the NPO must meet the provisions of Section 12 (A-O) of the Nonprofit Organisations Act, 1997 (Act 71 of 1997).  If you fail to do that, your application will be rejected.
      • You can submit your application at your nearest provincial Social Development office, post it to The Directorate, Non-profit organisations, Department of Social Development, Private Bag X901, Pretoria, 0001 or deliver it by hand to the Department of Social Development, 134 Pretorius Street, HSRC Building, Pretoria.
  2. If you are dissatisfied with the rejection or cancellation of your organisation’s certificate, you may launch an appeal to the panel arbitrators .
  3. Once it is registered, you  must submit the organisation’s annual report nine months after its financial year-end. The annual report should consist of a narrative report and a financial report.

Note:
It is a criminal offence for an organisation to operate under the pretence of a registered NPO. Various government departments offer funding for various services.

Timeframe

  • It may take approximately two months to process the entire registration.
  • Once your application has been received, the department will send you an acknowledgement letter. A registration certificate will be issued if your application meets the requirements of the Nonprofit Organisations Act, 1997.

How much does it cost

The service is free.

Forms to complete

(Forms are provided in PDF format. To open PDF documents, you need to have Adobe Acrobat Reader 4(link is external) or higher installed on your computer.)

How do I find my NPO certificate?

If your organisation is registered with the NPO Directorate and has been issued an NPO number, refer to www.npo.gov.za to check your status. The status will reflect – Registered, De-Registered or Non-compliant.

Steps for Online NPO Registration in South Africa

Step 1: Open the online NPO Registration page.

Step 2: Complete the required information:

  • Organisation Name
  • Organisation Type
  • Financial Period
  • Contact Person Name in the format Title, Initials, Surname (eg. Mr S Smith)
  • Contact Person Cellphone Number
  • Organisation’s Physical Address
  • Organisation’s Postal Address

When complete, click on next.

Step 3: In the section for office bearers, click on “Add a Office Bearer.” A form to complete details for each office bearer will appear. After adding all the office bearers, be sure to type in the number of office bearers above the office bearer names. There has to be a minimum of 3 office bearers, with a maximum set by your constitution. When complete, click on next.

Step 4: This section requires uploading the Founding Document (Constitution, Trust Deed or MOI) and Supporting Documents (ID Copies or any other documents relevant to the registration) in .pdf, .doc or .docx format. When complete, click on next.

Step 5: The last section of the application is a declaration of authorisation to apply and correctness of the information provided in the application. Tick the box next to “I Agree,” and click on the “Submit” button.

Step 6: A reference number for the application will be provided. Keep this for any future enquiries on the status of your application. The reference number will also be sent to the Contact Person’s e-mail address or cellphone.

If you’re not comfortable completing the process on your own, HGG NPO Sustainability Solutions, Ricardo Wyngaard Attorneys and others can assist at a fee, or you can visit your closest DSD office for free assistance