Removal of Pharmacies

It is imperative that pharmacies registered and licensed to operate in South Africa have registered a Responsible Pharmacist who is responsible for ensure compliance with the Rules relating to Good Pharmacy Practice and other pharmacy legislation, furthermore all pharmacy facilities should always be operated under the direct supervision of a pharmacist in order to protect public safety. Where these requirements are not met, Council removes the registration of such pharmacy in the interest of public health and safety.

Removal of pharmacies for non-compliance with legislation

The South African Pharmacy Council has established, within the Office of the Registrar, a review panel for the removal of pharmacy registrations and/or recordings due to non-compliance with the Rules relating to Good Pharmacy Practice, in line with Board Notice 63 of 2020 (Guidelines for the removal of pharmacy registration/recording as a result of non-compliance with Good Pharmacy Practice and other legislation).

Pharmacies with persistent noncompliance to Good Pharmacy Practice, other pharmacy-related legislation and non-payment of fees are a danger to the public and the good name of the pharmacy profession as a whole; as such, the Review Panel removes such pharmacies from Council’s Register of Pharmacies after considering all relevant factors.

The Review Panel held several meetings in since its inception and reviewed hundreds of cases, including pharmacies that do not comply with registration requirements, pharmacies where shortcomings had been corrected and were considered for no further action, and pharmacies that are no longer in operation. Once the review panel resolves to remove the recording and registration of a pharmacy, Council notifies the Director-General: Health of its decision which then results in the Department of Health also initiating a process to withdraw the licence of the said pharmacy. Thus, it may take some time between the time that Council removes a pharmacy from its registers and the time that the Department of Health withdraws the affected pharmacy’s licence. However, a pharmacy should cease all operations once its recording and/or registration with Council has been removed as it is a critical requirement for operating a pharmacy.

To assist members of the public, stakeholders, and the pharmacy professional in identifying pharmacies that are not active and/or have been removed from Council’s registers, the Office of the Registrar publishes a live exportable list of in active pharmacies at here; this list may also be accessed by visiting www.sapc.za.org and then clicking on “Members of the public” > “Search the register” > “Export: Pharmacies NOT Active”.

Pharmacies that are operating despite being recorded on the inactive list are in contravention of several legislation including the Pharmacy Act, 53 of 1974, and the Medicines and Related Substances Act, 101 of 1964, and should be reported to Council by clicking here or visiting www.sapc.za.org and then clicking on “Members of the public” > “Lodge a complaint”.