Compulsory community service changes for vets in South Africa
The Department of Agriculture has gazetted new regulations governing the compulsory community service (CSS) for veterinarians in South Africa for public comment.
The regulations will ultimately replace those published in 2015 when community service first came into effect for the field.
Under the new regulations, the department has extended the list of places where newly qualified vets can fulfil their obligation, as well as imposing more detailed limitations on those who do not complete it.
The CCS was formulated in 2015 and came into effect in 2016. The service runs for 12 months, which remains unchanged in the 2025 regulations.
The programme was established to provide accessible and affordable veterinary services to under-served and poor resourced areas within South Africa—especially in rural areas.
Under the programme, newly qualified vets are deployed by the Department of Agriculture across the entire country, with a focus on disease prevention and rendering ambulatory services.
Vets are also tasked with providing education on responsible pet ownership, resource utilisation and optimising livestock production.
According to the original founding statement, the department said the programme would give newly qualified vets opportunity to render their much needed service to rural areas and gain valuable experience and knowledge at the same time.
Since 2015, however, the regulations have been further refined, especially when it comes to where new vets can complete their community service.
The founding regulations had a general list of facilities with a specific focus on veterinary services and some related activities like research.
The new list has broadened this to also include work done in manufacturing and commodities related to the field.
Notably, any place where compulsory community service is performed must be accredited by the Department of Agriculture.
Other new provisions in the regulations include requiring any vet who performs compulsory community service outside of the department to enter into a performance agreement with the state.
This will include deliverables that need to be achieved, with a report expected to be delivered. In addition, any service outside the department will have to be paid by the entity they work for, not the state.
The table below outlines the changes to where vets can complete their service:
| 2015 regulations | 2025 regulations |
|---|---|
| Places for laboratory, diagnostic, research services, academia and commercial veterinary biological production | Regulatory state veterinary facilities |
| Places for State Veterinary Services | State veterinary clinical facilities |
| Places for Animal Welfare Organisations | Veterinary diagnostics laboratories |
| Places for Private Practitioners | Research and teaching laboratories |
| Places for the South African National Defence Force and the South African Police Service | Government departments responsible for the South African Police Service, South African Defence Force, Correctional Services, Environmental Affairs and conservation |
| Places for Nature Conservation | Agricultural and veterinary/para-veterinary learning institutions |
| Any other related places or groups | Manufacturers of veterinary products |
| Animal welfare organisations | |
| Nature conservation and wildlife facilities | |
| Agricultural and veterinary commodities groups | |
| Veterinary private practices | |
| Any other facility that delivers veterinary services, to be determined by the Department of Agriculture. |
Other changes are in the conditions of service for CSS vets.
These have been broadened to add restrictions on what qualifies as community service and the hoops vets will have to jump through.
For example, a person performing compulsory community service may not practice as a veterinarian for their own account, the department said.
If a vet intends to do so on a temporary basis—to fill in for another vet, for example—it needs to be done with written permission from the department.
Most notably, any remunerated work outside of a compulsory community service contract cannot substitute for the compulsory service.
The service runs for 12 months, in line with the Department of Agriculture’s standard working hours, and must be completed within 24 months from the date a vet is registered.
If a vet fails to complete the service within the allotted period, they will have to apply for an extension with the department.
As was the case in the previous regulations, a vet will only be issued a letter of completion when the compulsory service is completed.
The regulations are open for public comment. Stakeholders have 30 days to have their say, either through written comments or via email ([email protected])
The regulations can be read below:
Loading ...
