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CSD registration: how to register on the Central Supplier Database

Register on the CSD at secure.csd.gov.za in two stages: create a user (activated by email and an SMS one-time PIN), then add your supplier details and submit. It is free. When it succeeds you get a supplier number starting with MAAA, which every government quote and tender asks for.

Updated 13 October 2026 · Awardee · Sources listed below

What the CSD is

The Central Supplier Database is National Treasury's single list of businesses and people who can supply government. National and provincial departments, municipalities and public entities use it as their source of supplier information, and it has been the single source since 1 April 2016. You register once and every public buyer can see you.

It is big: on 13 October 2026 the CSD's home page showed 1,453,613 verified suppliers and 1,766,831 users. Buyers also use its commodity lists to find suppliers for quotations, so what you register affects which requests reach you.

What you need

National Treasury lists the following, depending on the kind of supplier you are:

  • a cell-phone number for one-time PINs, and an email address you check;
  • your identity number, or the company, trust or other registration number;
  • your industry classification and contact details;
  • your address, down to municipality and ward;
  • bank account details, so you can be paid;
  • tax information, and the names and ID numbers of directors or members;
  • the commodities you supply and where you deliver them;
  • accreditations such as CIDB, SETA or SANAS, if you have them.

How to register

  1. Create your CSD user. Register your basic details at secure.csd.gov.za, activate the account from the email link, then request a one-time PIN and enter the code sent by SMS.
  2. Add your supplier. Log in, choose Supplier Details, then Add Supplier, and complete the identification tab.
  3. Complete every tab. Industry classification, contacts, address, tax, directors or members, associations, commodities, notifications and B-BBEE.
  4. Check and submit. Open the Overview tab to make sure nothing is outstanding, then press Submit. The CSD warns: don't forget to submit.

Capture your commodities and delivery areas carefully. Buyers search the CSD by commodity and location when they send requests for quotation; if they are wrong, the requests go to someone else.

What gets checked

The CSD verifies your details electronically with other institutions instead of asking for paper certificates. Treasury's design lists checks with SARS (tax compliance, and whether directors are government employees), the Companies and Intellectual Property Commission (company registration and directors), Home Affairs (identity numbers) and the banks (account ownership). Out-of-date records at any of those institutions show up as problems on your CSD profile.

After you register

Registration is complete when you have a supplier number (it starts with MAAA) and a 36-digit unique registration reference number. With both you can print a registration report: choose Report, then Registration. Quote your MAAA number on every bid.

Then find work: 2,799 tenders and quotations were open on eTenders on 18 October 2026. Keep your record current; government checks it before each award. Treasury also warns about fake requests for quotation sent from look-alike government email addresses: confirm any unexpected order with the department, using contact details from its own website, before you deliver.

Questions

Is CSD registration free?

Yes. National Treasury says registration on the Central Supplier Database is free of charge. Anyone asking you to pay for a CSD number is not the government.

How do I know my CSD registration worked?

Registration is complete when your supplier record gets a supplier number (starting with MAAA) and a 36-digit unique registration reference number. You can then print a registration report from the CSD.

How long does bank verification take?

National Treasury says verification against the banks may take up to four days, so add your bank details well before you need to be paid.

Do I still need a tax clearance certificate?

Public buyers check your tax compliance status through the CSD, which verifies it with SARS. Keep your tax affairs in order: a non-compliant status shows on your CSD record.

Do municipalities use the CSD?

Yes. Municipalities, national and provincial departments and public entities all draw supplier information from the CSD. Municipalities may still ask you to join their own supplier list for quotations.

Sources

  1. Central Supplier Database: How to register. Read 13 October 2026
  2. Central Supplier Database home page (user and verified supplier counts). Read 13 October 2026
  3. National Treasury: Central Supplier Database surpasses milestone with 150 000 registered suppliers (registration free of charge). 28 June 2016
  4. National Treasury CSD team: Supplier registration support and training (verification interfaces). 6 August 2015
  5. Central Supplier Database: Fraud awareness

Awardee is an independent service, not a government website. This guide explains the rules in plain language; the gazetted text and the tender documents are what bind you.