How To Get a BEE Certificate

The first step is to establish which BEE certification route applies to your business.

Your annual turnover, business size, ownership structure and industry can all affect the requirements. Honeycomb identifies three broad BEE rating categories: Exempted Micro Enterprises (EMEs), Qualifying Small Enterprises (QSEs) and Generic Enterprises.

Not every business needs the same level of verification. Depending on your circumstances, you may be able to use an affidavit or other documentation rather than undergoing a full verification.

If you are unsure which route applies to your business, determining this before gathering your documents can save time and help you avoid following the wrong process.

If your business only requires a BEE affidavit, download the relevant affidavit and complete it.

If your business requires formal BBBEE verification, the process begins with a verification request.

You’ll need to provide basic information about your business so that the appropriate verification requirements can be established. This can include information such as:

• Company name and registration details
• Business location
• Industry or sector
• Annual turnover
• Financial year-end
• Black ownership percentage
• Number of employees
• Available financial statements or management accounts

Providing accurate information at this stage helps establish the appropriate process for your business.

The next step is to gather the evidence needed to support your B-BBEE assessment.

Depending on your business and the applicable B-BBEE requirements, this may include:

• Company registration documents
• Financial information
• Ownership and shareholder records
• Identity documents for relevant owners
• Employee and payroll information
• Skills development records
• Procurement information
• Enterprise and supplier development evidence
• Socio-economic development evidence
• Other relevant B-BBEE supporting documentation

The exact documents required will vary between businesses. You won’t necessarily need every type of document listed above. Honeycomb will be able to guide you on which documents you will need based on your circumstances.

Once your documentation has been prepared, a detailed claim sheet must be completed and submitted to Honeycomb for evaluation and review. This claim sheet sets out the points being claimed across the relevant B-BBEE elements.

The specific elements and requirements depend on the B-BBEE scorecard and sector code applicable to your business.

Depending on your business, the assessment may consider areas such as:

• Ownership
• Management control
• Skills development
• Enterprise and supplier development
• Socio-economic development

Honeycomb will select a sample of these claims for verification, which must be substantiated with suitable supporting evidence. The submitted evidence is then assessed against the applicable B-BBEE requirements to determine the points that can be awarded.

Where information is incomplete or further evidence is required, additional documentation may need to be provided during the verification process.

Where formal verification is required, an on-site verification forms part of the process.

The evidence submitted by the business is assessed and verified against the applicable B-BBEE requirements. Any outstanding information or supporting evidence may also need to be addressed as part of the verification process.

This is what differentiates formal B-BBEE verification from simply preparing a declaration of your BEE status.

Once the verification assessment has been completed, the findings are compiled into a preliminary report and scorecard.

This shows the points achieved for the applicable B-BBEE elements and the resulting B-BBEE status.

The preliminary findings can be reviewed before the final verification outcome is issued.

Once the verification process has been concluded, the final B-BBEE verification certificate and report are issued.

Your certificate provides evidence of your verified BEE status and can be supplied to customers, procurement teams or tender authorities where required.