CLARITY NOTICE AND INVITATION FOR APPLICATIONS FOR THE GRANT OF STATUTORY PDE EXEMPTION BY 30 JUNE 2023

In September 2017, the PPRA communicated the expanded criterion for the grant of the statutory exemption from the PDE in line with the interpretation of regulation 7(3) of The Standard of Training for Estate Agents Regulations, 2008 to give the above regulation its widest possible meaning and allowing property practitioners (estate agents) who continuously held a valid fidelity fund certificate for any five year period prior to 15 July 2008 to be granted PDE exemption for the role/s they held prior to 2008. This meant that property practitioners (estate agents) meeting this expanded interpretation of regulation 7(3) were required to lodge applications in order to be granted the statutory PDE exemption.
 
If, for example, a property practitioner (estate agent) continuously held a fidelity fund certificate as, say, a non-principal property practitioners (estate agent) during the period 1996 to 2001, then left the sector but subsequently returned to the estate agency profession as a non-principal property practitioners (estate agent), that person will, on application, qualify for the grant of an exemption against the Professional Designation Examination for non-principal property practitioners (estate agents) PDE 4. If upon their return, say, in 2003, they have since registered their own real estate firms and started practicing as a principal property practitioners (estate agent) to date, that person will, on application, also qualify for the grant of an exemption against the Professional Designation Examination for principal property practitioners (estate agents) PDE 5. Therefore this means that the nature of the PDE exemption that may be granted to qualifying applicants in terms of the applicable regulation will still depend on the status of the fidelity fund certificate held by the applicant property practitioners (estate agent) during the relevant continuous five-year qualifying period, and that is to say:
 
• an applicant who held a fidelity fund certificate as a non-principal property practitioner (estate agent) for the five-year period in question will qualify for the grant of the statutory exemption against the PDE 4;
• an applicant held a fidelity fund certificate as a principal property practitioner (estate agent) during the required period will qualify for the grant of the statutory exemption against the Professional Designation Examination for principal property practitioners (estate agents) PDE5; while  an applicant who held a fidelity fund certificate as both a non-principal and a principal property practitioner (estate agent) during the required continuous five-year period will qualify for the grant of the statutory exemption against both the PDE 4 and PDE 5 - depending on the status of the fidelity fund certificate that is currently held by the applicant.
 
Although the expanded interpretation of regulation 7(3) of the Education Regulations has since been implemented, some eligible stakeholders did not take advantage of the window and still failed to submit their applications todate. This serves to allso invite eligible stakeholders to lodge their applications before 30 June 2023 deadline by submitting a fully completed and signed PDE Exemption form to exemptions@theppra.org.za. The form is obtainable by clicking on this link:
 
https://theppra.org.za/download.php?data_id=114582 or completing the application form accompanying this notice.
Note: The grant of the statutory exemption against the PDE to qualifying applicants does not in any way supersede the requirement of obtaining the necessary NQF Level 4 or 5 real estate. Therefore, 30 June compliance deadline and disqualification thereafter will apply to those who have not met the NQF Level 4/5 requirement regardless of being granted PDE 4/5 statutory exemption.
 
Issued by the PPRA
Date Issued: 26 May 2023


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