Division of Revenue Act, 2025 (Act 02 of 2025)Chapter 3 : Conditional Allocations to Provinces and MunicipalitiesPart 3 : Matters relating to Schedule 4 to 7 allocations17. Withholding of allocations |
| (1) | Subject to subsections (2) and (3), a transferring officer may withhold the transfer of a Schedule 4 or 5 allocation, or a portion thereof, for a period not exceeding 30 days, if— |
| (a) | the province or municipality does not comply with any provision of this Act; |
| (b) | roll-overs of conditional allocations approved by the National Treasury in terms of section 21 have not been spent; or |
| (c) | there is significant under-expenditure on previous transfers during the 2025/26 financial year. |
| (2) | If an allocation, or a portion thereof, is withheld in terms of subsection (1), it suspends the applicable payment schedule, approved in terms of section 22(3), until it is amended in terms of section 23. |
| (3) | The amount withheld in terms of this section in the case of the Human Resources and Training Grant or the National Tertiary Services Grant listed in Part A of Schedule 4 may not exceed five per cent of the next transfer as contained in the relevant payment schedule. |
| (4) | A transferring officer must, at least seven working days before withholding an allocation, or a portion thereof, in terms of subsection (1)— |
| (a) | give the relevant receiving officer— |
| (i) | notice of the intention to withhold the allocation; and |
| (ii) | an opportunity to submit written representations as to why the allocation should not be withheld; and |
| (b) | inform the relevant provincial treasury and the National Treasury, and in respect of any conditional allocation to a municipality, also the provincial department responsible for local government of the withholding. |
| (5) | A notice envisaged in subsection (4)(a)(i) must include the reasons for withholding the allocation, or a portion thereof, and the intended duration of the withholding to inform the amendment of the payment schedule in terms of section 23. |
(6)
| (a) | The National Treasury may instruct, or approve a request from, the transferring officer to withhold an allocation, or a portion thereof, in terms of subsection (1) for a period of 30 to 120 days, if the withholding shall— |
| (i) | facilitate compliance with this Act; or |
| (ii) | minimise the risk of under-spending by the relevant provincial department or municipality. |
| (b) | When requesting the withholding of an allocation, or a portion thereof, in terms of this subsection, a transferring officer must submit to the National Treasury proof of compliance with subsection (4) and any representations received from the receiving officer. |
| (c) | The transferring officer must comply with subsection (4) when the National Treasury instructs or approves a request by the transferring officer in terms of paragraph (a). |