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Public Finance Management Act, 1999 (Act No. 1 of 1999)

Regulations

Treasury Regulations for Departments, Constitutional Institutions and Public Entities

Part 5 : Asset and liability management

11. Management of debtors

 

11.1 Application

 

11.1 This regulation applies to all debts accruing to an institution and includes any amount owing to or receivable by the institution, such as invoices for charges for goods or services, fees or fines outstanding.

 

11.2 Responsibility for the management of debtors [Section 38(1)(c)(i) and (d) of the PFMA]

 

11.2.1 The accounting officer of an institution must take effective and appropriate steps to timeously collect all money due to the institution including, as necessary—
(a) maintenance of proper accounts and records for all debtors, including amounts received in part payment; and
(b) referral of a matter to the State Attorney, where economical, to consider a legal demand and possible legal proceedings in a court of law.

 

11.3 Recovery of debts by instalments

 

11.3.1 Unless otherwise determined by law or agreement, debts owing to the state may, at the discretion of the accounting officer of the institution, be recovered in instalments.

 

11.4 Writing off of debts owing to the state [Sections 76(1)(e) and 76(4)(a) of the PFMA]

 

11.4.1 An accounting officer may only write off debts owed to the State if he or she is satisfied that—
(a) all reasonable steps have been taken to recover the debt and the debt is irrecoverable, or,
(b) he or she is convinced that—
(i) recovery of the debt would be uneconomical;
(ii) recovery would cause undue hardship to the debtor or his or her dependants; or
(iii) it would be to the advantage of the state to effect a settlement of its claim or to waive the claim.

 

11.4.2 An accounting officer must ensure that all debts written off are done in accordance with a write off policy determined by the accounting officer.

 

11.4.3 All debts written off must be disclosed in the annual financial statements, indicating the policy in terms of which the debt was written off.

 

11.5 Interest payable on debts to the state [Section 80 of the PFMA]

 

11.5.1 Interest must be charged on debts to the state at the interest rate determined by the Minister of Finance in terms of section 80 of the Act.