The SIZA flat rate of R1 600 (excl. VAT) per annum for Sedex Visibility will escalate from 1 July 2024 to R2 160 (excl. VAT)
In 2018, SIZA negotiated a special rate with Sedex to upload SIZA audits to the Sedex platform. Sedex distinguishes between SMETA audits and any other audits uploaded to Sedex, including SIZA audits. During negotiations, Sedex agreed that due to the equivalence agreement between SIZA and Sedex, SIZA could be treated as an equivalent partner to the SMETA audit by paying a lower upload fee.
The User paid service of SIZA to maintain the Sedex profiles of the SIZA members who need Sedex visibility includes the following services:
- Creating a profile and maintaining membership on the Sedex Platform
- Paying the fees for your membership and audit upload data
- Completing and updating the Sedex SAQ every six months
- Uploading SIZA audit data to the Sedex platform
- Creating direct and indirect visibility links when requested
In June 2024, Sedex announced an increase in its audit upload fees from £80 to £150 per audit upload. Fortunately, they decided not to increase the current membership fees that SIZA paid on behalf of our members, which remain at £25 per member. Although this is a significant increase on Sedex’s side, the user-paid services that SIZA supplies to its members are still much cheaper than working directly on your profile on Sedex.
The graph below illustrates the escalation of the negotiated fee between SIZA and Sedex between 2022 and 2025, compared to the global Sedex fees (applicable to all members outside of the SIZA agreement with Sedex) for uploading a SIZA audit.
The increase in audit upload amounts to:
£100 per audit over the last three years, an increased cost of 66,67%. However, the SIZA membership fee with Sedex has remained constant over the three financial years, remaining at £25 per year.
Despite these drastic fee increases, the SIZA negotiated fee remains significantly lower than global Sedex fees. When comparing membership fees in the 2024/25 financial year, the SIZA negotiated membership fee is 79,67% lower than other global Sedex members pay for membership and audit uploads. When looking at the fees for audit uploads, which have increased for SIZA members, the upload cost still amounts to 25% less than what any other global members are paying for a SMETA audit upload.
SIZA has applied a flat rate of R1 600 to all its members, requiring their SIZA information to be visible on Sedex over the last few years. The graph below indicates how the value of the Rand changed on a calculated average currency rate in the 2022/23 and 2023/24 financial years, suggesting that the flat rate should compensate for fluctuations in currency to avoid possible losses. The graph depicts that the flat rate was approximately £9 (R215) less than in the previous financial year.
The announced flat rate for SIZA members on the new Sedex fee would also have to account for administrative costs and currency fluctuations. Therefore, a 20% increase in the flat rate is suggested, resulting in a flat rate of R2 160 (£90) per annum for SIZA members requiring Sedex visibility through SIZA.
The graph below illustrates that even with an increase in the flat rate, SIZA members will still pay approximately 72% less than they would have paid if they were not part of SIZA.
In conclusion, In June 2024, Sedex announced an increase in its audit upload fees from £80 to £150 per audit upload. Fortunately, they decided not to increase the current membership fees that SIZA paid on behalf of our members, which remain at £25 per member. Although this is a significant increase on Sedex’s side, the user-paid services that SIZA supplies to its members are still much cheaper than working directly on your profile on Sedex.
Despite recent increases in Sedex’s audit upload fees, the negotiated rates for SIZA members remain substantially lower than global rates. This includes a steady membership fee and reduced audit upload costs, which continue to offer financial benefits to SIZA members. A slight increase in SIZA’s flat rate fee is proposed to maintain these advantages and account for currency fluctuations. Overall, SIZA members continue to enjoy considerable savings, paying about 72% less than they would have otherwise if SIZA had negotiated agreements.
If you would like to read more about the Sedex fees – please read more here.
If you have any questions regarding Sedex fees, please feel free to reach out to Retha Louw at retha@siza.co.za
