NSC FAQ
1. Umalusi
Umalusi is the Council responsible for quality assuring the National Senior Certificate, as offered by SACAI. Click here for more information about Umalusi’s role in education and training in South Africa.
SACAI is fully accredited by Umalusi to assess the NSC qualification.
Click here to view this information on Umalusi’s website.
Yes.
Private assessment bodies such as SACAI must be accredited by Umalusi.
Independent Schools offering the NSC qualification must be Umalusi accredited. These schools would have been issued an EMIS number by the Department of Education, before being accredited by Umalusi.
Distance Education Providers are currently not accredited by Umalusi. Until an accreditation process has been finalised – Distance Education Providers (as from 2020) will apply for a concession with Umalusi through SACAI in order to be acknowledged as institutions providing distance education to NSC learners.
2. SACAI Registered Institutions
Umalusi accredited independent schools that offer the NSC qualification to learners in the FET Phase (Grades 10 – 12). Click here to view all Registered Independent Schools
- An independent School is a school that is registered with the local Provincial Department of Education (PDE) and has the required EMIS number as proof of such registration.
- Independent Schools must also be accredited by Umalusi.
Distance education providers (including repeater centres) that offer the NSC qualification to distance learners in the FET Phase (Grades 10 – 12). Click here to view all Distance Education Providers.
- Distance Education Providers (DEPs) are institutions other than schools that register learners for the NSC qualification (Grades 10-12) via distance (home) education. The DEP provides the learner with curriculum materials and takes responsibility for the learner’s assessment throughout the year. SACAI externally moderates these assessments.
A list of SACAI registered institutions (NSC Providers) can be found on the SACAI website: www.sacai.org.za
Alternatively, send an e-mail detailing your query to Ms Ronel Smart: rsmart@sacai.org.za.
A repeater centre is an institution catering specifically for learners that failed Grade 12 or who wish to better their marks for a specific subject. Repeater Centres are also sometimes referred to as “matric rewrite centres” where candidates can “upgrade” their matric.
SACAI registers the following institutions:
Umalusi accredited Independent Schools offering the NSC qualification.
Distance Education Providers (including Repeater Centres) that comply with specific criteria. A list of the criteria may be requested by sending an e-mail to Ms Ronel Smart: rsmart@sacai.org.za.
15 October annually for new registrations.
31 October annually for the reregistration of existing institutions.
SACAI will not register new distance education providers for the 2025 academic year. Please contact us again in 2025 for registration for 2026.
Kindly send an e-mail detailing your query to Ms Ronel Smart: rsmart@sacai.org.za.
Any complaints related to operational issues at the institution must be resolved by the institution and the individual(s) concerned themselves.
Assessment related complaints may be sent to info@sacai.org.za, for attention: Chipo Chibaya
3. NSC Results
Results are published online. Visit the SACAI Candidate Portal (http://portal.sacai.co.za/) on the day that results are scheduled to be released and log in using the relevant Candidate and ID numbers.
Your official Statement of Results will be available for collection from your Examination Centre approximately 5 days after the online release of results.
3 Subjects passed with 40% or higher (including the Home Language) and at least 3 more subjects passed with 30% or higher. Candidates may fail one of their 7 subjects, provided there is full evidence of the SBA of that subject having been completed.
Your Statement of Results will indicate at which level you passed the NSC examinations. The level indicates the type of higher education studies you might qualify to pursue.
- Higher Certificate pass: The NSC with a minimum of ≥30% in the language of learning and teaching of the higher education institution.
- Diploma pass: The NSC with a minimum of ≥30% in the language of learning and teaching of the higher education institution, and ≥40% in four other recognised subjects (excluding Life Orientation).
- Bachelor’s Degree pass: The NSC with a minimum of ≥30% in the language of learning and teaching of the higher education institution and ≥50% in four other recognised subjects.
These levels are entry guidelines for higher certificate, diploma or degree courses. Each tertiary institution has additional requirements that need to be met for entrance. This means that you must be aware of the course entry requirements for the course you wish to study. Also remember that achieving the appropriate level does not necessarily guarantee acceptance.
Since 2018, universities consider all subjects (except Life Orientation) when calculating the APS (Admission Point Score) for possible admission.
It remains the responsibility of the candidate to make sure he/she takes the correct combination of subjects in order to qualify for their choice of university course.
A Statement of Results document is issued when the results are released by SACAI. While this document reflects the candidate’s results, it is not a certificate. It is a temporary document to be used for employment and/or further studies – until it is replaced by the official Umalusi matric certificate which is usually issued by July of the year following your final examinations.
Should a candidate not have met the requirements for the NSC qualification (thus failed Grade 12), an Umalusi Subject Statement will be issued. This document reflects the subjects in which the candidate did meet the minimum requirements.
You can apply to have your examination paper(s) re-marked or you can apply to write the May/June Examination (should you meet the requirements) in an effort to improve your results.
NSC matric certificates are issued by Umalusi and are usually available by July of the year following your final examinations. The certificates are sent to the institutions at which candidates were registered. Candidates must thus approach their school/distance education provider in July of the year following their Grade 12 examinations to arrange to collect the certificate.
Standardisation is a process used to eliminate the effect of factors other than the learners’ knowledge, abilities and aptitude on their performance. The aim is to ensure that learners are not advantaged or disadvantaged by factors other than their knowledge of the subject, abilities and aptitude and to achieve comparability and consistency of the results from one year to the next.
Click here for more details or visit Umalusi’s website for answers to FAQs on this matter.
- Candidates register for the writing of examinations (March)
- Umalusi monitors all examination processes (March-December)
- SACAI submits examination results to Umalusi (December)
- SACAI finalises the results per candidate (December)
- Umalusi checks the final results (December)
- Umalusi approves the final results (December/January)
- SACAI releases the candidates’ results (January)
- Candidates receive copies of their Statement of Results from their Examination Centres (January)
- Candidates decide whether to re-mark or write the May/June Examination.
- Re-mark is done after the closing date for the applications for re-mark.
- May/June Examination is written.
- The final results (November exam results, re-mark and May/June Examination results) are put together.
- SACAI submit candidates’ results to Umalusi for certification after the completion of the marking processes.
- Umalusi quality assures candidates’ results after completion of the marking process.
- Certificates are printed and sent to SACAI after completion of the examination cycle.
- SACAI sends certificates to NSC institutions as soon the results were approved by Umalusi.
Candidates receive their certificates (June/July)
4. May/June Examination
The NSC May/June Examination is written in May/June annually at designated SACAI examination venues by candidates who wrote the NSC examination the previous year(s) and qualifies to rewrite (a) subject(s). Candidates who were absent with a valid reason (medically unfit, death in the immediate family or another special reason) from one or more external question paper(s), may register. Candidates who want to improve their overall achievement status, or only want to improve the achievement of a subject, may register. Candidates can apply online. (See “Parents and Learners” on this website.)
Details on how to apply to write the May/June Examination will be available on the back of your Statement of Results, the SACAI website (www.sacai.org.za) and/or the SACAI Candidate Portal (http://portal.sacai.org.za)
- Applications for the May/June Examination are done online only.
- All applications must be submitted by the closing date. (See the SACAI website or candidate portal for the closing date. You can access the candidate portal here: http://portal.sacai.org.za/)
- May/June Examination applications are provisional – meaning SACAI will deliberate on the applications received and whether the applicant will indeed be allowed to write the May/June Examination.
- A per subject registration fee is payable, but only once your application to write has been approved.
- Candidates can register for any number of subjects.
- ONLY candidates meeting the requirements below may register to write the May/June Examinations.
- A NSC candidate who wrote all seven his/her subjects in October/November and failed to meet the minimum promotion and certification requirements. A candidate must have a fully completed SBA component, PAT and oral marks.
- The candidate must have achieved at least 25% in the NSC examination in order to be allowed to register for the Supplementary Examination.
- A candidate who missed a particular NSC examination session in October/November due to medical reasons, death in the immediate family or another special reason, provided that documentary evidence was submitted before the end of the examinations.
- A candidate who passed the NSC examination, but whose results do not comply with specific requirements for university admission and/or the practising of a specific occupation.
A candidate who failed the NSC examination and does not qualify for the May/June Examination must re-enrol for the next November examinations at a SACAI registered institution. Institutions registered with SACAI for the new year will be listed on the SACAI website. SACAI reserves the right to register and deregister institutions at any time, hence it is important for parents/learners to check with their respective institutions if they are registered with SACAI for the new year.
SACAI will issue a new Statement of Results to a candidate who wrote the NSC May/June Examination. The date for the release of the results will be announced by SACAI and the Statement of Results will be obtainable from the candidate’s NSC Examination Centre.
5. Combining Results / Replacement Certificates
Combination of results refers to cases where a candidate wrote matric in more than one examination sitting. The candidate thus has two (or more) sets of results that must be combined into one set of results in order to qualify for the National Senior Certificate (NSC) and have a new Umalusi certificate issued.
As per Umalusi policy, results cannot be combined if there will be no status change. In other words, if you already obtained a Bachelor pass during your first examination sitting, your two sets of results cannot be combined as there is no better result than a Bachelor pass. You will therefore have to submit both your certificates whenever applying for employment or further studies.
In order to combine results you have to complete the ‘Application for Combination of Results’ form (available for download from the SACAI website) and submit it to Ms Emily Moloi: emily@sacai.org.za.
IMPORTANT:
- Please do not apply until you have all the required documents. Umalusi matric certificates are only issued in June/July of the year following your exam sitting, and applications should only be made once you have received this certificate.
- The following documents must accompany the application form:
- A certified copy of the candidate’s ID document
- Copies of your Statements of Results
- Copies of your barcoded Umalusi certificates (NO combination can be done without these documents)
- Proof of payment will be requested by SACAI after the documents listed above have been verified to ensure that a combination can indeed be done. SACAI will communicate with the applicant, notifying them that all is in order and payment can then be done.
Should there be a mistake on a matric certificate (such as incorrect personal details or results), Umalusi will consider a reissue. Candidates who wrote the SACAI NSC examination must make the request for a reissue with SACAI. Documents required are:
- The ‘Application for Replacement Certificate’ form (available for download from the SACAI website),
- the original matric certificate, as well as
- a detailed explanation supporting the request must be submitted.
- It is important to note that a reissue will only be considered if the original certificate is returned. SACAI will send the submitted documents to Umalusi on the candidate’s behalf.
- A fee is be payable for the replacement of a matric certificate.
In the case of a matric certificate having been lost, you need to apply to have a new certificate issued to you. Candidates who wrote the SACAI NSC examination must make the request for a replacement certificate to SACAI. Documents required are:
- The ‘Application for Replacement Certificate’ form (available for download from the SACAI website).
- An affidavit confirming that the certificate is lost.
- SACAI will send the submitted documents to Umalusi on the candidate’s behalf.
- A fee is be payable for the replacement of a matric certificate.
It takes approximately 8-12 weeks for a new certificate to be issued. That is, 8-12 weeks from the date that all supporting documents were submitted to SACAI.
IMPORTANT:
- Combination requests will only be accepted as from June/July (after the Umalusi certificates for the previous years’ exam were issued). This means that combined certificates is only likely to be issued by September/October of each year.
SACAI will inform you when the new certificate is ready for collection from the SACAI offices in Pretoria.
Kindly note that, for security reasons, certificates must be collected from SACAI. You are welcome to arrange for a courier to collect on your behalf if need be. Please inform SACAI of any such arrangements.
SACAI will issue a combination letter upon request. This letter will reflect the results that will be combined and can be submitted to universities/employers together with your two certificates as proof that a new Umalusi certificate will be issued in due course.
Kindly contact Ms Emily Moloi for more information about combination letters: emily@sacai.org.za.
Letters will only be issued if the candidate meets the requirements to have his/her results combined and may take up to 5 working days to be issued.
6. NSC Qualification
NSC = National Senior Certificate.
The NSC is a qualification at Level 4 on the National Qualifications Framework (NQF) which is awarded to Grade 12 candidates who comply with the national policy requirements set out in the ‘National policy pertaining to the programme and promotion requirements of the National Curriculum Statement Grades R – 12’.
The NSC is a 3-year qualification offered in the Further Education and Training (FET) phase, Grade 10-12.
CAPS = Curriculum and Assessment Policy Statements.
CAPS refers to the policy documents stipulating the aim, scope, content and assessment for each subject listed in the National Curriculum Statement Grades R – 12.
The amended Section 4 requirements will be implemented by SACAI in for Grade 10-11 in 2021 and Grade 12 in 2022.
3 Subjects passed with 40% or more (including the Home Language) and 3 subjects passed with 30% or more. Learners may fail one subject, provided there is full evidence of the SBA having been completed.
Promotion takes place when a candidate adheres to minimum pass requirements as per the NPPPR paragraph 29:
- Candidate takes at least two languages (one HL, one FAL), Maths or Maths Lit, LO and three electives.
- Achieved 40% in three subjects, one of which is an official language at Home Language level, and 30% in three other subjects. Can fail one subject.
- Candidate must have submitted and been assessed on the complete SBA component of all seven subjects.
Candidate must have submitted and been assessed on the complete SBA component of all seven subjects.
Progression takes place when a candidate does not adhere to the minimum pass requirements as per paragraph 29. The following apply:
- Candidate has already failed either Grade 10 or Grade 11 AND
- Candidate must pass four subjects (with at least 30%), one of which must be the LoLT (most probably the HL). LO may be one of the four subjects AND
- If this learner is in an Independent School, he/she may not be absent for more than 20 days per year.
IMPORTANT: The records of learners qualifying for progression must be approved by SACAI.
7. Subject Changes
Yes, but only under the circumstances detailed below:
Two subject changes in Grade 10, provided this is done before 30 June of the Grade 10 year.
Two subject changes in Grade 11, provided this is done before 31 March of the Grade 11 year.
In exceptional cases a learner may change one additional subject in Grade 11, provided this is done before 15 December of the Grade 11 year.
In case of 1 and 2 above, the principal of the school or institution must consider the subject change. SACAI is to be notified of any subject changes by submitting the ‘Notification of subject changes in Grade 10-11’ form to SACAI before the mentioned closing dates.
In the case of 3 above, a separate form namely ‘Request for subject change in Grade 11 after 31 March’, must be submitted to SACAI’s chief executive officer together with the supporting documents listed on the form.
All communication and forms must be sent to SACAI by the school/distance education provider at which a learner is registered. No parent or learner is to contact SACAI with regards to having a subject changed.
Subject changes are refused on two occasions:
It was submitted outside the timeframes as determined by policy.
Policy does not allow for the combination of subjects the learner will offer should the request be granted.
8. Remarking and viewing of examination scripts
The marking of NSC examination papers is done by experienced and qualified panels and is closely monitored by external Umalusi moderators. It is thus unlikely that major marking errors will occur. Should a candidate, however, be certain that his/her marks will improve with a re-mark, he/she can apply to have it done. Certain criteria apply and a fee per paper to be re-marked is payable.
Re-mark results are usually available by the end of March (depending on Umalusi verification processes).
Should a candidate still be unhappy with his/her results after having had a re-mark, he/she can apply to view the examination scripts. A written motivation explaining the reason for wishing to view the script(s) must be submitted to the CEO of SACAI within 7 days of the date on which the re-mark results were officially released. A date and time for the viewing will be announced within 14 days from the date on which the application was received by SACAI (only if the application was approved by the CEO). The script(s) will be viewed in the presence of an examination official and may not be removed from the viewing room. A viewing fee is payable.
A candidate may only apply for a re-mark if the result originally obtained is within 3% of a higher symbol, e.g. 27% (to potentially become 30%), 37% (to become 40%), etc.
Applications are done online via the SACAI Candidate Portal only.
Kindly see the SACAI website (www.sacai.org.za), the candidate portal and/or the back of your Statement of Results for details regarding the closing date(s) and fees payable.
9. Repeating Grade 12
No. You can redo only the subjects you failed.
IMPORTANT:
- After repeating the subjects that need further improvement, you will have two separate sets of results that have to be combined to make one set of results which indicate that you have met the requirements to obtain the NSC qualification. In order to combine these results, you will have to complete the Combination Application form and submit it with the required supporting documents, to SACAI. Upon verifying the two separate sets of results and the required supporting documentation, SACAI will communicate with the parent/learner to go ahead and make payment. Payment should not be made until SACAI confirms it has all necessary documents. The Combination Application form is available for download on the SACAI website (www.sacai.org.za).
Candidates who are repeating a specific subject can choose whether they would like to redo the subject’s SBA (site-based assessments) or not. In other words, do you want to redo all of the tasks, term tests and examinations, or do you rather want to use the SBA mark you attained previously and just write the final NSC examination in October/November?
Unfortunately, this is not possible. You will have to register with a SACAI registered institution who will, in turn, register you with SACAI to write the NSC examination.
Yes, repeater candidates are allowed to write the May/June Examination.
10. Payments / Finances
No parent or learner is allowed to make any payments directly to SACAI unless specifically stipulated for events or services offered directly to the applicants or candidates (i.e. supplementary examinations, certificate combinations, etc.). All payments should be made to the learners’ school or distance education provider, who in turn is responsible for making the bulk payment(s) to SACAI.
Parents should address their financial queries to the school or distance education provider at which their child is registered.
ABSA
Account name: SACAI
Account number: 4082806741
Branch code: 632005
Please use the prescribed reference when making payment.
