A B-BBEE certificate or sworn affidavit is the document a customer asks for, and most of the practical questions are about it: how to get one, how long it lasts, and how to tell a valid one from a worthless one.
This page deals with the document itself — obtaining it, verifying it, and keeping it current.
Business Requirements at a Glance
What obtaining a B-BBEE certificate or affidavit involves.
- Establishing your annual total revenue and therefore your category
- For an Exempted Micro Enterprise: a sworn affidavit in the prescribed form
- For a Qualifying Small Enterprise: an affidavit where black ownership is high enough, or a verified scorecard
- For larger entities: a verified certificate from a SANAS-accredited agency
- Accurate financial and ownership records supporting the claim
- A commissioner of oaths, for a sworn affidavit
- Engagement of a SANAS-accredited verification agency, where verification is required
- Renewal before the validity period expires
Registration and Legal Requirements
B-BBEE is governed by the Broad-Based Black Economic Empowerment Act 53 of 2003 and the Codes of Good Practice issued under it, together with sector codes where a sector code applies. The B-BBEE Commission oversees compliance and the Department of Trade, Industry and Competition administers the framework.
Confirm the current thresholds, scorecard weightings and requirements with the Department of Trade, Industry and Competition, the B-BBEE Commission or a SANAS-accredited verification agency. The Codes and sector codes are amended, and third-party summaries go out of date quickly.
The affidavit route is free and it is legitimate. For an Exempted Micro Enterprise, a sworn affidavit in the prescribed form, signed before a commissioner of oaths, is the compliance document. Customers accept it because the Codes provide for it. Do not pay an agency for a certificate you can make yourself.
Use the prescribed form. The affidavit must contain the prescribed content, and an affidavit drafted loosely is likely to be rejected by a customer. The Department of Trade, Industry and Competition publishes the templates.
Verify an agency before engaging it. Only a SANAS-accredited B-BBEE verification agency may issue a valid certificate, and SANAS publishes the list. A certificate from an unaccredited agency is worthless, and customers verify.
Check certificates you receive from suppliers too. If your own scorecard counts procurement from suppliers, an invalid supplier certificate costs you points. Verify the agency’s accreditation and the certificate’s validity date.
Fronting is a criminal offence. Misrepresenting ownership, control or participation to obtain or improve a B-BBEE status is prohibited under the B-BBEE Act, and it carries serious consequences for everyone involved — the entity, its directors and the person whose participation is misrepresented. Arrangements where a black shareholder holds a nominal interest without real economic benefit or control are exactly what the Act targets.
Documents and Ownership Information Required
What is generally required.
- CIPC registration documents and a current company profile
- A shareholders’ or members’ register with identity details
- Beneficial ownership information as filed with the CIPC
- Certified ID copies for directors, members and shareholders
- Annual financial statements or, for a small entity, a signed turnover confirmation
- A SARS tax compliance status PIN
- Payroll records and employment equity data, where the scorecard requires them
- Records of skills development, procurement and enterprise development spend, where applicable
Tax, Licence and Compliance Requirements
Certificates and affidavits have a validity period. Confirm the current period and diarise renewal well before expiry — an expired document discovered at a tender submission costs the tender.
The financial year end matters. Verification is done against a financial period, so the timing of your year end determines when a certificate can be issued and how long the process takes. Plan around it.
Keep the underlying records. A verification agency tests every claim against documents, and claims without evidence are not counted. That is the single most common reason a level comes back lower than expected.
Tax compliance is generally required for tenders and for many procurement processes alongside the B-BBEE document. Obtain the SARS tax compliance status PIN and keep it current.
Give customers the document proactively. Suppliers who provide a current certificate or affidavit without being chased are easier to procure from, and it is a small commercial advantage.
Report suspected fronting to the B-BBEE Commission, which investigates it. Participating in a fronting arrangement, even as the nominal beneficiary, carries consequences.
Process, Deadlines and Ongoing Obligations
Establish your category, then either obtain the sworn affidavit in the prescribed form or engage a SANAS-accredited verification agency, allowing time before the document is needed.
Diarise the renewal against the validity period, and start the renewal process well before expiry rather than at it.
Never buy a certificate. A certificate obtained without a genuine verification is invalid and its use is fraudulent. Anyone selling one is offering something worthless at best and criminal at worst.
Use free support. The Small Enterprise Development Agency assists small businesses with compliance questions at no cost, including with the affidavit route.
- Establish your category before doing anything else
- Use the free sworn affidavit route if you are an Exempted Micro Enterprise
- Use the prescribed affidavit template, not a loosely drafted one
- Verify a verification agency’s SANAS accreditation before engaging it
- Check supplier certificates for validity if procurement counts for you
- Confirm the validity period and diarise the renewal
- Plan verification around your financial year end
- Keep supporting records — unevidenced claims are not counted
- Obtain and maintain a SARS tax compliance status PIN
- Never buy a certificate — report fronting to the B-BBEE Commission
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I have to pay for a certificate?
Not if you are an Exempted Micro Enterprise. A sworn affidavit in the prescribed form, signed before a commissioner of oaths, is the compliance document and it costs nothing beyond that.
How do I check an agency is legitimate?
Only SANAS-accredited verification agencies may issue a valid certificate, and SANAS publishes the list. A certificate from an unaccredited agency is worthless.
Why did my level come back lower than expected?
Usually because claims were not supported by documents. Verification agencies test every claim against evidence, and unevidenced claims are not counted.
When should I renew?
Well before the validity period expires. An expired document discovered at a tender submission costs the tender, and renewal takes time.
Certificate and affidavit requirements, validity periods, prescribed forms and accreditation are set in the B-BBEE Act, the Codes of Good Practice, by the Department of Trade, Industry and Competition and by SANAS, and are amended. Confirm current requirements with them.