DTIC Developing Omnibus Bill to Improve Ease of Doing Business

Posted 24 June 2025 Written by Acts Online
Category Trade

Brought to you by SA Legal Academy: The Department of Trade, Industry and Competition (DTIC) has initiated a legislative assessment process to develop a General Laws Amendment (Omnibus) Bill aimed at improving the ease of doing business in South Africa.

During a briefing to the National Assembly’s Portfolio Committee on Trade, Industry and Competition on 17 June 2025, Director-General Simphiwe Hamilton confirmed that the department is currently evaluating various statutes under its mandate to identify provisions that hinder economic activity. The proposed Omnibus Bill is intended to consolidate amendments across multiple Acts to reduce regulatory fragmentation and administrative burdens.

While the specific list of statutes to be included in the Omnibus Bill has not yet been finalised, the DTIC indicated that the following areas are under review:

  • Companies Act, No. 71 of 2008 and related corporate governance frameworks;
  • Intellectual property legislation, including three specific amendment Bills currently in development;
  • Competition and consumer protection regulatory frameworks; and
  • Sector-specific statutes that impact the cost of compliance for small and medium enterprises.

The Director-General noted that a final decision on the scope of the Omnibus Bill is expected within the next few months. This process runs parallel to the development of three standalone Intellectual Property (IP) amendment Bills, which are yet to be released in draft form for public comment. The department’s objective is to align these legislative changes with the broader goal of streamlining the regulatory environment by the end of the 2025/26 financial year.

What this means for you, your business, or your clients

  • For yourself: No direct individual obligations; professional focus should remain on monitoring the DTIC legislative programme for the release of the draft Omnibus Bill to identify specific regulatory hurdles being removed.
  • For your business: Prepare for potential changes to administrative filing requirements and compliance procedures across multiple DTIC-administered statutes, which may require updates to internal compliance manuals.
  • For your clients: Advise clients in highly regulated sectors that a consolidation of compliance requirements is pending, which may reduce the long-term administrative burden of multi-statute adherence but will require a transitional compliance audit once the Bill is enacted.

Originally published at https://legalacademy.co.za/news/read/trade-industry-competition-director-general-hazy-on-omnibus-bill-specifics

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