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PRECCA Amendment Bill 2026
- 30 April 2026
- Legal and Compliance
- South African Accounting Academy
The Bill includes an amendment to South Africa's primary anti-corruption legislation, the Prevention and Combating of Corrupt Activities Act, 2004 (PRECCA) in the form of a new clause 34A to PRECCA, creating a failure to prevent corrupt activities offence.
Currently, Section 34 of PRECCA makes it obligatory for anyone in a public or private company who learns of corruption or fraud to report it to the South African Police if the value of the incident loss is over ZAR 100,000. Now, as of 3 April 2026, if authorities in private or public companies fail to stop "associates" from engaging in corruption, they themselves will be liable.
This is in line with international best practice and a clear principle of zero tolerance for corruption.
The draft Bill seeks to:
- Introduce mandatory minimum sentences for offences relating to corrupt activities, linked to the monetary value of the corruption involved - ranging from 5 to 18 years. This is to ensure consistent, proportionate and deterrent penalties.
- Strengthen penalties for non-disclosure of blacklisting, which now results in a doubled fine of R R500 000, and an increased prison sentence from 3 years to 5 years.
- Lower the threshold for the mandatory reporting of corruption to strengthen accountability and transparency in both public and private institutions from R100 000 to R30 000. This change will ensure that more corruption-related crimes are reported earlier and investigated more effectively.
The call for public submissions on the draft Bill closed on 12 April 2026.
To date, the PRECCA Amendment Bill, 2026, has not yet been accepted or passed into law. An explanatory summary is published in accordance with Rule 276(1)(c).
Access the Gazetted Notice of Intent at https://www.gov.za/sites/default/files/gcis_document/202603/54319gen3821.pdf
Click here to download the 7-page Bill:
https://www.actionsa.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/ActionSA-2026.03.09-PRECCA-Amendment-Bill.pdf
Relevance to Auditors, Independent Reviewers & Accountants:
- The Prevention and Combating of Corrupt Activities Act, 2004 (PRECCA) is yet another piece of legislation that your clients must comply with, and which you must assess compliance with. If they don’t comply with the relevant laws and regulations, you have certain reporting obligations in terms of NOCLAR (NOn-Compliance with Laws And Regulations) – this could include reporting to management, qualifying your audit opinion, reporting a Reportable Irregularity, etc.
- As an auditor and independent reviewer, you need to consider amendments to legislation that are gazetted relating to Money Laundering and Terrorism Financing Control legislation – specifically PRECCA.
Relevance to Your Clients:
- Anyone in a public or private company has a duty to comply with PRECCA, otherwise they could be held liable.
- Relevant entities and individuals should be aware of amendments to legislation that are gazetted relating to Money Laundering and Terrorism Financing Control legislation – specifically PRECCA.