Debt review removal is the legal process of clearing the debt review status from your credit profile at all South African credit bureaus. The flag is placed when you enter debt review under Section 86 of the National Credit Act 34 of 2005 (NCA). While it is on your profile, you cannot apply for credit, take out loans, or enter new credit agreements.
The flag does not disappear on its own. Even if your financial situation has improved, it stays on your credit profile until one of the following legally recognised events occurs:
• You have settled all debts under your debt review plan (excluding a current home loan), and your debt counsellor issues a Clearance Certificate (Form 19) under Section 71 of the NCA.
• A Magistrate's Court grants an order confirming you are no longer over-indebted, rejecting the debt review proposal under Section 87 of the NCA.
• A Magistrate's Court rescinds an existing debt review court order under Section 165 of the NCA.
Debt review removal is not the same as cancelling a debit order or stopping payments to your debt counsellor. Those actions do not remove the flag and may allow creditors to take legal action while you remain listed as under debt review.
Once the flag is removed and credit bureaus are updated, which takes up to 21 business days, you are legally free to apply for credit again under Section 88 of the NCA. Credit score recovery depends on the overall state of your credit profile and payment behaviour after removal.
NDRC has managed hundreds of debt review removal applications across all nine provinces since 2014. Our NCR-registered debt counsellors (NCR: NCRDC3106) and admitted attorney partners handle the process from assessment to final bureau confirmation.