South African Nursing Council

eRegister

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

Why can't I search the eRegister by name?

The register of nurses and midwives has a very high incidence of duplicate names.  Particularly in cases where there is only one given name there can be many duplicate entries.  It is therefore impossible to always get a positive match based on names alone.

Why does the practitioner's ID number sometimes not display on the eRegister?

The practitioner's South African Identity Number will ONLY be displayed if you requested the record using the ID number.  To protect the person's personal information, the practitioner's ID number will not be displayed if you do  not have access to it already.  (The ID number is displayed so that it will appear on any printout you may make for your records.  If you do not want the ID number on the printout, request the record again using the practitioner's SANC number.)

Why are there no contact details on the eRegister?

In order to protect the privacy of practitioners, no contact details are held in the eRegister (South African Nursing Council Electronic Register of Nurses and Midwives).  It is an unfortunate fact that many unscrupulous individuals and companies "mine" the Internet for personal details that are then used to exploit the individuals concerned.  At the very least, the individual can be subjected to masses of unsolicited correspondence or emails.  But in more severe cases, criminal activities like identity theft can be carried out using the information gathered in this way.

Why are there no registration certificate numbers on the eRegister?

In the answer to the previous question about contact details, we have indicated that the publication of too much specific detailed information in the eRegister makes it easy for fraudsters to create a detailed portfolio of information that could be used to impersonate a legitimate nurse.  Employees/prospective employees should be required to provide proof (acceptable to the employer) of their true identity.

What does the "End Date (this year)" mean?

The End Date (this year) gives the last date in the current year that the indicated registration status is valid.  In most cases it will be the last day of the calendar year i.e. 31 December.

However, there are a number of situations in which it will be some other date.  For instance, if a practitioner's limited registration is expiring during the current year, then this date will be set to the expiry date of the limited registration.  A practitioner whose registration in the category Community Service will expire in the current year would be in the same position: at least until his/her registration was updated to full registration as Nurse and Midwife.

The final case is the one in which a practitioner was registered for the first time in the PREVIOUS year.  Such a practitioner's registration certificate is valid proof of registration for a period of 12 months from the date of registration.  In this case the End Date (this year) will give the final date of that 12 month period.  (Obviously, the practitioner must pay his/her annual fees before that date in order to extend the period of registration to the end of the current year.)

Why does the Expiry Date of registrations show as "N/A"?

This means that an Expiry Date is not applicable (N/A) to these registrations.  (At the moment, only Limited Registrations and registrations in the category Community Service have expiry dates.)  However, this does not mean that nursing practitioners who have such registrations are granted registration for life.  All nursing practitioners must maintain their registration through payment of an annual fee to the Council and by observing all other conditions of the Nursing Act, 2005 and the regulations.  The validity of additional and listed qualifications is also directly linked to the practitioner maintaining his/her registration status.

Why does the Start Date of some registrations show just a year?

The Council's first computer system (in use from 1975 to 1982) only allowed the recording of the year in which a certificate was issued and not the full date.  If necessary, the Council can get the exact date a certificate was issued from its other records.

Why does the Start Date of some qualifications show "Before 1996"?

The Council's first computer system (in use from 1975 to 1982) did not allow the recording of the date (or year) in which an additional qualification certificate was issued.

In addition a small number of basic qualifications transferred from other computer systems to the Council's system in 1995 did not have any registration dates.

In both these instances, if necessary, the Council can get the date a certificate was issued from its other records.

Why is there sometimes no annual practising certificate number on the eRegister ?

The annual practising certificate (APC) is just one of several documents which can be presented as proof of registration.  During the first 12 months of registration, a nurse will not necessarily have an APC - because she/he is not required to pay annual fees during the first 12 months after the date of registration.  The Nursing Act, 2005 makes it quite clear that during this period the certificate of registration is proof of registration.  In all such cases, the eRegister will display "Practitioner's due date for payment of annual fees is (date)" in place of the APC number.  The date naturally being the end of the 12 month period after registration.

While on the subject of the APC (and APC numbers), it is useful to remind users that in terms of the Nursing Act, 2005 a practitioner must be REGISTERED in order to practise his/her profession.  Organizations which insist that the APC is the ONLY acceptable proof of registration are gravely mistaken and any such organization should immediately consult the Nursing Act, 2005 to make sure that they apply all the provisions of the law.

By way of illustration, the following is a fairly complicated example.  A practitioner who has been registered as a professional nurse for some years will have an APC showing that she is registered as professional nurse.  During the year the practitioner completes the Midwifery programme and is registered as midwife for which she obtains a certificate of registration - which is proof of registration for 12 months.  The practitioner is obviously registered as both professional nurse and as midwife even though "midwife" may not be shown on her APC for the current year.  "Midwife" will obviously appear on the APC the next time she pays her annual fees.

Why does the eRegister sometimes display APC details for the NEXT year?

Practitioners pay annual fees for NEXT year during the period 1 July to 31 December of the CURRENT year.  While the eRegister is meant to show the CURRENT status of practitioners, this information has been included so that practitioners and employers have an easy way to confirm whether annual fees for NEXT year have already been paid or not.

Why can't I use a printed copy of my details as proof of registration?

Regrettably, it is possible to forge or alter the information page presented by the eRegister and to print a copy using any modern word processing program.  That is why any person or organisation (for example a prospective employer) wishing to verify a nurse's registration status MUST perform the enquiry on the eRegister him-/her-/itself.  A copy of the details can then be printed for that person or organisation's own records as evidence that the necessary verification has been done.