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National Credit Act, 2005 (Act No. 34 of 2005)

Chapter 3 : Consumer Credit Industry Regulation

Part A : Registration requirements, criteria and procedures

46. Disqualification of natural persons

 

(1) A natural person may not be registered as a credit bureau.

 

(2) A natural person may not be registered as a credit provider, debt counsellor or payment distribution agent if that person is an unrehabilitated insolvent.

[Subsection (2) substituted by section 14(a) of Act No. 19 of 2014]

 

(3) A natural person may not be registered as a credit provider, debt counsellor, or payment distribution agent, if that person—

[Words preceding section 46(3)(a) substituted by section 14(b) of Act No. 19 of 2014]

(a) is under the age of 18 years;
(b) as a result of a court order, is listed on the register of excluded persons in terms of section 14 of the National Gambling Act, 2004 (Act No. 7 of 2004);
(c) is subject to an order of a competent court holding that person to be mentally unfit or disordered;
(d) has ever been removed from an office of trust on account of misconduct relating to fraud or the misappropriation of money, whether in the Republic or elsewhere;
(e) has ever been a director or member of a governing body of an entity at the time that such an entity has—
(i) been involuntarily deregistered in terms of a public regulation;
(ii) brought the consumer credit industry into disrepute; or
(iii) acted with disregard for consumer rights generally; or
(f) has been convicted during the previous 10 years, in the Republic or elsewhere, of—
(i) theft, fraud, forgery or uttering a forged document, perjury, or an offence under the Prevention and Combating of Corrupt Activities Act, 2004 (Act No. 12 of 2004), or comparable legislation of another jurisdiction;
(ii) a crime involving violence against another natural person; or
(iii) an offence in terms of this Act, a repealed law or comparable provincial legislation,

and has been sentenced to imprisonment without the option of a fine unless the person has received a grant of amnesty or free pardon for the offence.

 

(4) In addition to the disqualifications set out in subsection (3), a natural person may not be registered as a debt counsellor if that person is—
(a) subject to an administration order as contemplated in section 74 of the Magistrates' Court Act, 1944 (Act No. 32 of 1944);
(b) subject to debt re-arrangement as contemplated in sections 86 and 87; or
(c) engaged in, employed by or acting as an agent for a person that is engaged in—
(i) debt collection;
(ii) the operation of a credit bureau;
(iii) credit provision; or
(iv) any other activity prescribed by the Minister on the grounds that there is an inherent conflict of interest between that activity and debt counselling.

 

(5) The National Credit Regulator must deregister a natural person if the registrant becomes disqualified in terms of this section at any time after being registered.