Government Extends Registration Deadline for Spaza Shops to February 2025

The South African government has extended the registration deadline for spaza shops and food-handling outlets to February 28, 2025. The move comes after the initial 21-day period, announced by President Cyril Ramaphosa, ended with thousands of small businesses still unregistered.

Progress So Far

On Wednesday, Minister of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs (COGTA), Velenkosini Hlabisa, provided an update on the initiative.

• Registration Centers: 392 centers were set up across all nine provinces.
• Applications Received: 42,915 applications were submitted between November 15 and December 5.
• Approved Applications: 19,386 businesses have been successfully registered.

“This is significant progress for such a short time, but more work needs to be done,” said Hlabisa.

Recognizing the challenges faced by spaza shop owners, the government has decided to extend the registration deadline.

“By February 28, 2025, we aim to finalize the registration process and implement measures to address food-borne illnesses and the illicit trade of goods,” Hlabisa added.

Registered businesses must also complete the process of obtaining trading licenses to fully comply with regulations.

The initiative follows multiple incidents of food-borne illnesses that claimed several lives, many of them children. The deaths were linked to food purchased from unregistered spaza shops, particularly in township areas.

Dr. Daniel Fikreyesus, representing the Association for Non-Governmental and Governmental Advocacy (ANGGA), welcomed the extension but highlighted the hurdles shop owners face.

“While we appreciate the government’s initiative, many owners struggle to gather the necessary documents within such a short period. Running businesses and fulfilling these new requirements simultaneously is not easy,” said Fikreyesus.

He emphasized that registering businesses would give owners greater confidence in their operations.

The government continues to encourage spaza shop owners to register and comply with health and safety standards to protect consumers. Registration centers will remain operational until the new deadline, ensuring that businesses across South Africa can align with the regulations.

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