On 13 August, the Minister of Trade, Industry and Competition, Parks Tau, published draft amendments to the regulations under the National Credit Act (NCA). The proposed amendments focus on the maintenance and retention of consumer credit information by credit bureaus, the submission of consumer credit information to credit bureaus, and the criteria for conducting affordability assessments by credit providers.
The draft NCA Amendment Regulations propose changes to Regulations 18, 19, and 23A of the regulations made in terms of the Act, as originally published under Government Notice No. R. 489 of 31 May 2006 and subsequently amended by Government Notices 1209 of 30 November 2006, 604 of 29 May 2008, 202 of 13 March 2015, and 1080 of 6 November 2015.
The draft NCA Amendment Regulations were published in Government Gazette No. 53154 as Government Notice No. R. 6510.
Regulation 18: Maintenance and retention of consumer information
Regulation 18 addresses the maintenance and retention of consumer credit information by credit bureaus. The draft amendments introduce several substitutions and insertions to expand the scope and accuracy of this information.
The changes to Regulation 18 will ensure that consumers or persons, including juristic persons, are identified by their identity number, passport number, or registration number, and in cases where these identifiers are unavailable, other reasonable methods will be employed to ensure accurate identification.
The amendments also introduce requirements for ongoing credit risk management by credit providers, including provisions for assessing the credit status and financial position of related persons of small businesses, as well as the application for credit or funding by small businesses.
Sub-regulation (7) will permit registered credit bureaus to receive consumer credit information from various sources, including organs of state, courts, judicial officers, suppliers of goods, services, or utilities, insurance providers, entities involved in fraud investigation, educational institutions, and debt collectors.
Regulation 19: Submission of consumer credit information to credit bureaus
Regulation 19 pertains to the submission of consumer credit information to credit bureaus. The draft amendments propose substitutions to sub-regulations (1), (2), and (13) to standardise and enhance the information required.
The revisions to sub-regulations (1) and (2) mandate that the information submitted to a credit bureau must include the consumer’s initials and surname, full names and surname, or registered name or trading name, identity number, passport number, and date of birth or registration number. Additionally, residential address, telephone number, employer details, and place of work must be included where available.
The substitution for sub-regulation (13) states: “A credit provider and data providers must submit credit information to the credit bureaus in the manner and form prescribed by the National Credit Regulator.”
Regulation 23A: Criteria for affordability assessments
Regulation 23A sets out the criteria to conduct an affordability assessment, and the draft includes significant proposed revisions.
The draft amendments propose to substitute sub-regulations (3) and (4) and sub-regulations (8) and (9).
The new sub-regulation (3) provides that a credit provider, when assessing a consumer to determine whether the consumer has the financial means and prospects to pay the proposed credit instalments, must consider the consumer’s discretionary income or the financial means and prospects of the consumer, including reasonable revenue flow from a commercial activity funded by the credit agreement. The proposed amendments further allow for this type of assessment as an alternative where a credit provider takes practicable steps to validate the gross income of the consumer in terms of sub-regulation (4).
The substituted sub-regulation (8) provides that where the credit provider must calculate the consumer’s existing means, prospects, and obligations, the credit provider must also consider the realisation of assets as financial prospects, as well as reasonable future revenue that may be generated by a commercial purpose funded by the credit agreement.
The amendment to sub-regulation (9) provides that where a credit provider assesses the existing financial obligations of the consumer, the credit provider must use the minimum expense norms table under sub-regulation (10).
Sub-regulation (9) has been further amended to state that the “table does not apply to small business, and the realistic business expenditure must be disclosed by the consumer to the credit provider”.
Comment period and submission details
Interested parties must submit written comments no later than 30 days from the date of the publication, which means comments must be submitted by 12 September 2025.
Comments may be addressed to the Director-General at the Department of Trade, Industry and Competition at Private Bag X84, Pretoria, 0001, or hand-delivered to 77 Meintjies Street, Block B, 1st Floor, Sunnyside, Pretoria. Comments can also be submitted electronically to Credit@thedtic.gov.za .
