Is ECD registration on eCares free?

Yes. The DBE states that registration is completely free and asks centres to report anyone who charges a fee to help them register, via banapele@dbe.gov.za. Free support is also available from provincial ECD officials and the Bana Pele call centre on 0800 202 933.

What is the difference between Bronze, Silver and Gold?

Bronze is your entry certificate for applying, described in sector guides as valid for about 12 months. Silver is conditional registration for centres meeting the basic norms and standards. Gold is full registration for centres meeting all norms and standards. Validity periods can vary by province, so confirm with your district office.

What is Form 30 and who needs it?

Form 30 is the application to check whether a person's name appears in Part B of the National Child Protection Register, a child-safety clearance. You complete one for each adult involved: yourself, every staff member, and board members if you are an NPO. It is not the ECD application form itself.

The ECD function moved from DSD to DBE, do my old DSD papers still count?

The ECD registration function moved from Social Development to Basic Education on 1 April 2022, and registration is now handled by the DBE through eCares. If you hold an older DSD registration you should still engage with eCares for the DBE's records and to move up the Bronze, Silver and Gold levels. Confirm your specific status with your district ECD official.

Can I register by phone if I do not have a computer?

The DBE runs online and mobile registration channels, including a WhatsApp channel and a USSD callback option advertised for people without data, so you can complete the process on a smartphone. Confirm the current channels on the official DBE Bana Pele page or by calling 0800 202 933.

Guide

The DBE eCares ECD Registration System: A Step-by-Step Walkthrough (South Africa)

Registering your crèche now runs through the Department of Basic Education's free online system called eCares, launched under the Bana Pele registration drive. This guide walks you through every channel, document and stage, from your first Bronze certificate to full Gold registration.

Updated August 2026 · The eCares portal and channels are being rolled out in phases and can change — always confirm the current links on the official DBE Bana Pele page.

What is the DBE eCares (Bana Pele) ECD registration system?

eCares is the Department of Basic Education's free online system for registering early childhood development (ECD) programmes in South Africa. It runs under the national Bana Pele registration drive. You apply at user-registration.dbecares.gov.za or by WhatsApp, receive a Bronze certificate first, then work up to Silver and Gold full registration.

eCares exists because the ECD function was shifted from the Department of Social Development (DSD) to the Department of Basic Education (DBE) on 1 April 2022. The DBE is now the department responsible for registering, monitoring and supporting ECD programmes under the Children's Act.

The old paper-based DSD process was slow, and most centres in the country are still not registered. eCares digitises the whole thing so you can start an application from a phone, get recognised quickly with a Bronze certificate, and then improve toward full registration over time instead of being turned away for one missing document.

Who must register an ECD programme on eCares?

Every ECD programme in South Africa must register, whether it is currently registered, part-registered or completely informal. That includes crèches, day-mothers, playgroups, pre-schools and any service that gives care and early learning to children from birth up to school-going age. Registration is a legal requirement under the Children's Act and is the gateway to government funding.

The drive is deliberately trying to pull every ECD programme into the regulatory net, so a centre that has never had any paperwork is exactly who this is for. If you already hold an older DSD registration, you still engage with eCares for the DBE's records and to move up the certification levels.

How do you register — online, WhatsApp or with help?

There are a few ways in. Apply online at the eCares portal, user-registration.dbecares.gov.za. The DBE also runs a WhatsApp registration channel and advertises a USSD callback option for people without data, and you can complete registration on a computer, laptop, tablet or smartphone. Confirm the current WhatsApp number and USSD code on the official DBE Bana Pele page, as these are being rolled out in phases.

You do not have to do it alone, and you must never pay a private agent to register you. Free help is available:

Bana Pele call centre: 0800 202 933 for enquiries.
Email: banapele@dbe.gov.za for questions or to report anyone charging you for registration.
Your provincial and district ECD officials, who run support sessions and site visits.

How do you start an application on eCares?

To start, open the eCares portal or the WhatsApp channel and create your application, then capture your centre's details and upload your documents. The system saves your progress, so you can gather papers between sessions. Complete the online Health and Safety questionnaire as part of the application. On submission of a valid application you receive your Bronze certificate.

Choose your channel: go to user-registration.dbecares.gov.za, or use the DBE's eCares WhatsApp registration channel.
Register the applicant (you as owner, or the NPO or company) and create the ECD programme record.
Capture your centre's information: address, contact details, staff, and children's numbers by age group.
Upload the required documents (see the next section) and complete the online Health and Safety questionnaire.
Review and submit. A valid application returns a Bronze certificate.

What documents and information do you need to apply?

For the first stage you need identity documents and child-protection clearances for the adults, your staff qualifications, and a headcount of the children by age band. You also answer a health and safety questionnaire online. Gather these before you start so you can finish in one or two sittings. Photos of children's faces must never be uploaded.

Documents to upload

Certified copies of ID or passport for yourself, all staff, and board members (if you are an NPO).
Form 30 for each of those adults. Form 30 is the application to check whether a person's name appears in Part B of the National Child Protection Register, a child-safety clearance. It is not the ECD application form itself.
An optional photo of the learning environment (tables, chairs, educational posters). If children are in the picture, their faces must not be visible.

Information to have ready

For each staff member: their highest ECD qualification, email address and mobile number.
Children's numbers by age group (birth–18 months, 18 months–3 years, 3–4, 4–5, 5–6): number of boys and girls, how many receive the Child Support Grant, and how many have special needs.
The Health and Safety questionnaire, which you complete online during the application.

What are the Bronze, Silver and Gold registration stages?

Registration is a three-step ladder: APPLY, COMPLY, COMPLETE. Applying gets you a Bronze certificate straight away. Complying means submitting the remaining documents and passing site inspections. Completing means you are issued a Silver certificate (conditional registration) or a Gold certificate (full registration), depending on how fully you meet the norms and standards.

Bronze — APPLY

This is your entry certificate, recognising that you have started the process. It is a form of conditional registration, and sector guides describe it as valid for about 12 months, giving you time to work toward the higher levels.

Silver — COMPLY

Silver is a conditional registration for centres that meet the basic norms and standards but not yet all of them. To reach it you submit the outstanding documents and pass site inspections by the Education District official and an Environmental Health Practitioner (EHP). Sector guides describe Silver as valid for around three years, though the exact period can vary by province.

Gold — COMPLETE

Gold is full registration, for centres that meet all the norms and standards. Sector guides describe it as valid for around five years, again subject to provincial variation. If an application is refused you are told the reasons and typically given a period to fix the problems and try again.

Documents added at the Silver or Gold stage

Business plan and a drawn site layout of the premises.
Founding documents (for an NPO or company).
Emergency plan and on-site registers: accident register, health policy, attendance register and child admission forms.

What happens after you apply?

After you submit, you get your Bronze certificate as recognition of registration in progress. The department then moves you into the COMPLY phase: you upload remaining documents, and district education and environmental health officials arrange site visits to check your premises against the norms and standards. Once verified, you are issued a Silver or Gold certificate.

Keep your login details safe, because you return to the same eCares portal to complete the Silver and Gold stages. From here on, the practical work is ongoing compliance: keeping your registers, attendance records and headcounts accurate and up to date, because these are exactly what inspectors and the subsidy process check.

How much does eCares registration cost?

ECD registration through eCares is completely free. The DBE states this directly and asks centres to report anyone charging a fee to help you register, via banapele@dbe.gov.za. Registering is also what makes your centre eligible for the government per-child ECD subsidy, which was raised to R24 per child per day in the 2025 Budget after years frozen at R17.

Registration is the start, not the finish. Silver and Gold both depend on an attendance register that is kept correctly, plus clean headcounts and records that inspectors can verify, and the R24 subsidy is paid on the days children actually attend. Zande is South African software built by a crèche owner to handle exactly this ongoing admin: daily attendance, the DBE and DOE registers for the subsidy, learner records, fees and WhatsApp reminders, from R99/month. It does not register you with the DBE, but it keeps the records eCares expects in order.