South Africa’s National Opt-Out Registry is designed to enable consumers to block spam calls, but comes with a caveat for those complaining about spam.

Speaking to Cape Talk, Werksmans’ head of regulatory, Ahmore Burger-Smidt, said the registry and its regulations marked the first time that South Africa was enforcing legislation surrounding telemarketing.

She explained that the opt-out registry gave consumers an official government-recognised way to block spam calls.

If a consumer receives a spam call but did not opt out of direct marketing from the relevant company on the portal, their complaint becomes useless.

“A consumer can’t complain about receiving a direct marketing call if he or she has not registered and ticked the boxes to say do not contact me,” she said.

She added that consumers could opt out of life insurance and funeral insurance calls, for example, or select the option to have all direct marketers not contact them at all.

“The important thing is to realise we’ve never had this kind of register in South Africa. The legislation has always been there, but for the first time, this is now being implemented,” Burger-Smidt said.

Asked why consumers are required to opt out when various laws already protect them, she described the issue as an anomaly between various pieces of legislation.

“That’s the anomaly and the conflict between the Protection of Personal Information (POPI) legislation and the National Consumer Commission and the Consumer Protection Act (CPA),” Burger-Smidt said.

“In terms of the Consumer Protection Act, there’s nothing wrong with direct marketing, and Minister Parks Tau said that at the launch.”

She explained that the issues related to how and when direct marketers communicate with consumers. She said the CPA regulates when consumers can be called and other related arrangements.

“In terms of the POPI legislation, there we’ve got the provisions around me having to consent or having to be a customer of the marketer, and I have to opt in,” Burger-Smidt said.

“But the reality is that the one right we all have, irrespective of how they get to us, we must always have the right to say ‘do not contact me’.”

South Africa joins a growing number of countries with no-call lists

Hardin Ratshisusu, Acting Commissioner of the National Consumer Commission
The National Consumer Commission (NCC) officially launched the National Opt-Out Registry on Wednesday, 7 October 2026.

The registry is designed to protect consumers from unwanted direct marketing calls, SMSes, and other forms of communication.

Acting NCC Commissioner Hardin Ratshisusu said the launch meant South Africa had joined various other nations in protecting consumers from spam.

“South Africa joins a growing group of jurisdictions that have adopted national opt-out or do-not-call registries to protect consumers from unwanted direct marketing,” he said.

“These include the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, India, Australia, Singapore, Nigeria, and several European jurisdictions.”

The acting commissioner explained that the NCC will roll out the National Opt-Out Registry in phases, allowing consumers and direct marketers to register.

“Phase 1 will focus on registration. The system was opened to direct marketers for registration from 15 September 2026 until December 2026,” Ratshisusu said.

“Should a direct marketer fail to register during the period of registration, such failure after this period may constitute a contravention of Section 11 of the Consumer Protection Act.”

He said the second phase would prioritise database cleansing. Direct marketers will be allowed to clear their database between December 2026 and April 2027.

Moreover, this will be available at no cost to direct marketers, so they can understand the process and make the necessary preparations.

“A successful Opt-Out Registry requires both direct marketers and consumers to register in order to pre-emptively block unwanted direct marketing communication,” Ratshisusu said.

“Collaboration with all affected stakeholders will be crucial. The NCC will be rolling out consumer education initiatives across the country to help them register.”

Source: https://mybroadband.co.za/news/cellular/671315-south-africans-could-lose-the-right-to-complain-about-spam-calls.html