Expropriation without Compensation

In January, 2025 President Cyril Ramaphosa signed South Africa’s new Expropriation Act.

This legislation introduces “expropriation without compensation” and significantly expands the supposed justification for expropriation of private property.

Notably, this Act also moves away from internationally accepted standards.

In most parts of the world, expropriation of private property is allowed for the “public purpose” (building roads, hospitals) and linked to fair market value.

Within the previous version of the Act, South Africa matched these standards.

This new Act, however, expands the supposed justification for expropriation and moves away from fair market value within certain circumstances.

To begin, the Act introduces the definition of "public interest".

This term allows for expropriation, based on the claimed addressing of "past racial discrimination" or the advancing of "equitable access to resources." This vague, open-ended definition significantly expands the scope of supposed justification.

In addition, the Act also introduces "nil compensation" or otherwise understood as zero compensation.

Despite some government officials claiming this technically still amounts to a value of compensation, the end value is null (otherwise described as zero Rands).

Such expropriation without compensation applies within certain circumstances defined in the Act.

One such circumstance includes where land can be taken when authorities determine the "owner's main purpose is not to develop the land but to benefit from market appreciation."

Any developer holding land during planning phases or awaiting permits could be accused of "speculation", allowing municipalities to seize prime development land for zero compensation.

This provision is dangerously open to abuse.

Notably, the Act currently names four such circumstances, however, the Act directly states grounds for expropriation of land without compensation are "not limited to" these listed circumstances.

The list from a legal standpoint, therefore, remains open-ended.

In September 2025, Sakeliga publicised an important case of expropriation without compensation.

The ANC-controlled City of Ekurhuleni (eastern Johannesburg) in Gauteng province had expropriated a 34-hectare property called portion 406 of the Farm Driefontein for zero compensation.

Despite the expropriation occurring in February 2019 under the previous version of the Act this serves as a critical test case.

The argument being made by the Ekurhuleni Municipality seeks to challenge Section 25 of the Constitution. It is Section 25 of the Constitution that requires that the expropriation of private property must be 'subject to compensation' that is 'just and equitable,' with market value as a key consideration.

The Farm Driefontein court case is scheduled for February 2026.

Some individuals retain belief in the new Act, suggesting that the courts are positioned to prevent the abuse of such legislation.

In South Africa, the reality looks different.

People facing such expropriation without compensation could take the matter to court.

However, with court cases often taking years to finalise, mounting legal costs and the loss of control over the property in the interim, the process represents irrevocable harm.

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Our legal team is preparing litigation on the Expropriation Act 13 of 2024.

In addition, we have invited the DA, FF+, and IFP to participate in discussions on appropriate political measures. These are the parties in the current governing coalition that voted against the Expropriation Act last year.

We have also alerted trade representatives of foreign missions in South Africa.

We are monitoring other cases of expropriation and will be alerting property development companies and related businesses with a view to co-ordinated protective measures.

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