As part of the national skills development reform process, South Africa has been transitioning from the historical SAQA unit standard-based qualification system to the newer QCTO occupational qualification framework. The intention of this transition is to replace legacy qualifications and unit standards with occupational qualifications that are more closely aligned to workplace competence and industry needs. The QCTO now oversees the development, quality assurance, assessment, and certification of occupational qualifications within the Occupational Qualifications Sub-Framework (OQSF).

All SAQA qualifications (including the qualification under which the LIC unit standards currently expired on 30 June 2026.  On 17 June 2026, the Minister of Higher Education and Training announced extensions for several legacy qualifications that have not yet completed the transition process. However, the qualification containing the LIC unit standards was not included in the list of qualifications granted an extension.

Unfortunately, there is currently no registered replacement qualification, skills programme, or alternative learning pathway available for the LIC unit standards. As a result, once the qualification expired on 30 June 2026, no accredited provider is permitted to enrol learners or offer training against these unit standards until further direction is provided by the relevant authorities.

This situation affects all training providers nationally and is not specific to any one provider. We continue to monitor developments and will communicate any updates as soon as further information becomes available from the relevant authorities.