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Goldza

Buyer’s guide · reviewed 27 July 2026

Is this gold buyer legitimate?

A legitimate South African gold buyer is registered three times over, under three different laws. The single most useful thing you can do before you sell is ask to see the registrations, and treat a buyer who has none, or who will not take your ID, as the warning it is.

The three registrations
1

SADPMR licence or permit

Precious Metals Act 37 of 2005

The legal right to buy and deal in gold at all. Without it, buying your gold as a business is an offence.

2

SAPS second-hand goods dealer

Second-Hand Goods Act 6 of 2009

Registration to trade in used jewellery, with a duty to record every transaction and the seller’s identity, kept for at least five years.

3

FIC accountable institution

FIC Act 38 of 2001, Schedule 1 Item 20

Anti-money-laundering registration, required of high-value goods dealers trading at R100 000 or more, with a duty to identify and verify you.

Why a real buyer asks for your ID

It feels like friction. It is actually your protection. Three separate laws force a legitimate buyer to identify you and keep records. The Second-Hand Goods Act requires a dealer to record the identity of the person they buy from and keep the paperwork for at least five years. FICA requires an accountable institution to identify and verify its customer. And the Precious Metals Act, in section 14, only lets a dealer buy from someone who has shown proof they may sell.

Behind all of it sits section 20 of the Precious Metals Act, which makes it a criminal offence, punishable by a fine of up to R1 million or 20 years, to buy gold without first satisfying yourself that the seller is lawfully entitled to sell it. So the buyer who takes your ID and logs the sale is obeying the law. The buyer who offers instant cash, no questions asked, is either non-compliant or knowingly working the grey market. That is the honest reason to walk away, not a hunch.

How to verify a buyer, step by step

  1. Ask to see their SADPMR licence or permit (Precious Metals Act 37 of 2005). Note the type and number.
  2. Ask to see their SAPS second-hand goods dealer registration (Second-Hand Goods Act 6 of 2009).
  3. If the deal is R100 000 or more, they should be FIC-registered as an accountable institution.
  4. Confirm they take your ID and give you paperwork. A buyer who skips this is outside the law.
  5. To confirm a licence independently, contact SADPMR and SAPS directly. Do not rely on a certificate on the wall.

The red flags

  • Will not take your ID, or wants untraceable cash only with no paperwork.
  • Weighs or tests the gold out of your sight.
  • Cannot or will not produce a licence when asked.
  • Quotes a headline gold price, then pays a much lower, unexplained figure.
  • Pressures you to decide now and discourages a second quote.

None of this means selling gold is dangerous or difficult. It means the protections exist for a reason, and using them costs you nothing. Once you have a compliant buyer, the only number left to negotiate is what percentage of the melt value they pay, which is where what buyers actually pay comes in.

One practical note, and we are being careful about what we claim here. We have not inspected any buyer's licence, so we do not certify anyone's registrations, including on this page: the whole point above is that you ask to see them yourself and confirm them with the regulator. What we can check from a desk is whether a buyer publishes its price at all. Most do not. Prodiam publishes a percentage of the live gold price, and Zeek Gold publishes a rand-per-gram table. Neither fact tells you anything about their licences. Ask for those in person, every time.

The Goldza desk

General information, not legal advice. Legal references: Precious Metals Act 37 of 2005 (SADPMR), Second-Hand Goods Act 6 of 2009 (SAPS), Financial Intelligence Centre Act 38 of 2001 (FIC). Confirm current requirements with the SADPMR, SAPS and FIC.

Common questions

Verifying a gold buyer, answered

How do I know if a gold buyer is legitimate in South Africa?
A compliant SA gold buyer is registered three times over: an SADPMR licence or permit under the Precious Metals Act 37 of 2005, a SAPS second-hand goods dealer registration under the Second-Hand Goods Act 6 of 2009, and, for larger trades, FIC registration as an accountable institution under the FIC Act 38 of 2001. Ask to see the first two, note the licence type and number, and confirm them with the regulators directly.
Why does a gold buyer want my ID?
Because the law requires it. The Second-Hand Goods Act obliges a dealer to record who they buy from and keep a copy of your identity document; FICA requires them to identify and verify you; and the Precious Metals Act makes it an offence to buy gold without confirming the seller is entitled to sell it. A buyer who asks for your ID is following the law. A buyer who refuses to take it is the red flag.
Is there a public register to check a gold buyer’s licence?
We could not confirm a public, searchable online register of precious-metal licences. The reliable route is to ask the buyer to produce their SADPMR licence or permit and their SAPS registration certificate, note the numbers, and contact the SADPMR and SAPS directly to confirm a specific licence. Do not rely on a framed certificate on the wall alone.
Is it a crime to buy gold without checking the seller?
Yes. Section 20 of the Precious Metals Act makes it an offence to buy unwrought or semi-fabricated precious metal without having satisfied yourself that the seller is lawfully entitled to sell it, carrying a fine of up to R1 million or up to 20 years’ imprisonment. That is the law that makes a legitimate buyer careful, and explains why a no-questions-asked buyer is operating outside it.