For holders of a remedy registration under Act 36 of 1947. This does not cover fertilizers. This is information, not legal advice. Checked 26 October 2026.
The short version
A registration lasts up to three years and can be renewed for another three. The regulations say apply at least two months (60 days) before the expiry date on your certificate. A late application may be accepted for a penalty, but only at the registrar's discretion.
The dates
Read the expiry date on your own certificate. The Registrar's 2024 renewal guideline says it is usually 31 May of the year closest to three years after the registration or the last renewal.
The 2023 regulations (regulation 10(2)) say apply at least two months (60 days) before the expiry date. Plan to be in well before that point. The guideline's own wording is "from" two months before, which reads as the start of a window, so do not rely on it.
For a certificate expiring on 31 May, the guideline treats an application between 31 May and 30 June as late, with an extra fee, and one received after 30 June as a lapsed registration. The regulations are framed differently. The registrar may accept a late application with a penalty if it comes within 30 days after the certificate's expiry date (regulation 10(4)). That is a discretion, not a right, and it does not give you a right to keep selling in that time. The department's 2026 notice says applications must reach the registrar not later than 31 May 2026, which is stricter than the guideline's 31 May to 30 June wording. Do not leave it to the late period.
If you applied in time and the new certificate is not issued before expiry, the registrar must, on request, give you a letter acknowledging a valid renewal application and confirming that the current registration stays valid (regulation 12(2)). Ask for it and keep it. It applies to a valid application, so make sure yours is complete.
What you need to submit
- The renewals checklist, signed by the regulatory manager and the responsible SACNASP-registered supervisor. Leave no field blank: write N/A where something does not apply.
- The service request form and a cover letter.
- Proof of payment. The total depends on how many remedies you are renewing and on whether you are on time or late.
- Form A, the renewal application, in duplicate according to the guideline.
- Form B, for any remedy you are not renewing, in duplicate, with the original certificates. If a certificate is lost, send an affidavit. Send Form B even if you are renewing nothing and only cancelling.
- Form C, the declaration under the 2023 regulations, in duplicate. The regulations behind it require declarations that the remedy contains no active ingredient, co-formulant or biological organism regarded as a substance of concern, that no new scientific evidence on health effects for vulnerable groups, especially children, is available, and that the details and label do not deviate from what is registered or approved.
- Form D, the record of active ingredient manufacturers, in duplicate.
- A copy of each current certificate.
Things that must be recent
For a daughter or parallel registration, the contract must be signed and dated within six months of your renewal submission. Where it applies, the letter from the active ingredient's manufacturing source must be issued within six months of submission (regulation 10(3)(g)). Date these documents against the day you expect to submit. If you gather them too early, they can be too old by then.
Other items, where they apply
Proof of compliance with the Extended Producer Responsibility Scheme for the pesticide sector (Government Notice R 3177 of 23 March 2023). Reports on harmful or unacceptable effects, and on adverse reactions, from the previous three-year registration cycle, or a declaration that there were none. The regulations also ask for the information required by regulation 34(4) (records of disposal of empty containers and remedy, kept for five years) and records of compliance with regulations 37 and 38 (immediate reporting of new information and of adverse effects). Those reporting duties apply at the time, not only at renewal. The registrar may also ask for an electronic copy of the approved label and printed copies of the commercial label (regulation 11).
Check with the registrar
The department's renewal notice for the 2026 to 2029 cycle asks for something different from the 2024 guideline. It asks for Form A in triplicate and a supplier letter no older than twelve months, where the guideline says duplicate and six months. The regulations (regulation 10(3)(g)) say six months for the letter from the manufacturing source. The notice's "supplier of technical material" may not be the same letter as the guideline's "manufacturing source", so confirm which letter is meant as well as its age. The notice's dates are inconsistent too. Ask the registrar's office in writing which version applies to your certificate.
The notice also asks for an affidavit confirming that the source of the active ingredient, the formulation and the label have not changed. It says container and pack sizes, and label wording, may not change without the registrar's prior written approval. A renewal is not a route to make those changes.
Regulation 14 says the original certificate must be returned within fourteen days of notice of cancellation or of the registration lapsing. A lost original needs an affidavit within fourteen days of its loss.
The renewal fee is set in the tariff regulations. The 2026 notice quotes R6,995 per application. The tariff published on 13 February 2026 shows R6,995 per application or product from 1 April 2026, with a further R4,883 per application or product for a late renewal. Check the current tariff before you pay.
Sources
Guideline for the renewal of agricultural remedies, issued by the Registrar of Act 36 of 1947, March 2024. Regulations relating to agricultural remedies, 25 August 2023 (regulations 10 to 14, 34, 37 and 38). The department's renewal notice for the 2026 to 2029 cycle. Government Gazette 54123 of 13 February 2026 (tariffs). The guideline is published on the department's guidelines page: https://www.nda.gov.za/index.php/publication/581-guidelines