South Africa has no Ministry of Industry and Commerce. The functions sit with the Department of Trade, Industry and Competition, styled “the dtic”. Many countries use the older name, which is why the search persists.
If you are looking for a foreign ministry of industry and commerce, that country’s own government portal or its embassy in Pretoria is the route, and South African contact details will not help.
If you are looking for the South African department, the routes below are its published ones. Company registration, consumer complaints and competition matters each sit with a separate entity in its portfolio rather than with the department itself.
This page covers how to contact the Department of Trade, Industry and Competition in South Africa. The details below were taken from the official Department of Trade, Industry and Competition contact page rather than from any third-party directory.
ContactDetails.co.za is an independent directory. We are not the Department of Trade, Industry and Competition and cannot act on your behalf. Everything on this page is a routing aid so you reach the right official channel quickly.
The Department of Trade, Industry and Competition contact numbers
These routes were verified against the official Department of Trade, Industry and Competition contact page on 22 August 2026. Contact numbers do change, so confirm on the official page before relying on one for anything urgent.
| What it is for | Contact |
|---|---|
| Customer contact centre, national | 0861 843 384 |
| Customer contact centre, international | +27 12 394 9500 |
| General email | [email protected] |
| KwaZulu-Natal office, Durban | 031 334 2560 |
| Western Cape office, Cape Town | 021 480 8050 |
| Eastern Cape office, Gqeberha | 041 502 9000 |
| Presidential Hotline | 17737 |
The customer contact centre is open Monday to Friday from 08:00 to 17:00.
We publish the office numbers only. The dtic’s own contact page lists named officials with personal mobile numbers; we do not republish individuals’ direct or mobile numbers. Company registration and business names are handled by the Companies and Intellectual Property Commission, which is a separate entity within the dtic’s portfolio.
Self-service options before you call
- Check the official site at thedtic.gov.za, which carries the current contact details and any online enquiry form.
- Email to [email protected], which gives you a written record of what you asked and when.
- Calling outside peak times. Monday mornings and the hour after 17:00 are usually the worst for South African contact centres.
What to have ready before you call
- A clear one line summary of what you need resolved.
- Your account, order or reference number if you already have one.
- The identity document or account holder details, since most South African providers verify who you are before discussing an account.
- Dates, amounts and any error message exactly as it appeared.
- A pen and paper for the reference number. Ask for one every time, because without it a follow up call starts from nothing.
Trade, imports and doing business across borders
- Import and export permits are issued by ITAC, the International Trade Administration Commission, not by the department directly, and some goods need one before they may be cleared.
- Customs is SARS. Duties, clearing and the release of held goods are SARS Customs matters, and a shipment stuck at a port is a customs enquiry rather than a trade policy one.
- Company and business name registration is CIPC, the Companies and Intellectual Property Commission, which is also where trade marks and patents are registered.
- Incentive schemes are applied for directly and free. Consultants offering to secure an incentive for a percentage are selling access to a public process.
- Standards and compliance are the NRCS and the SABS. Regulated products must meet compulsory specifications before they may be sold in South Africa.
Most enquiries that reach a trade department actually belong to one of its entities. Identifying which entity handles your question is the step that turns a month of redirection into a single call.
Complaints and escalation
If a first call does not resolve the matter, escalate through the office’s own service or complaints channel first, keeping every reference number, then the provincial office and then the national department. If it stays unresolved, the Presidential Hotline on 17737 is the national government’s own complaints line, and the Public Protector investigates undue delay and maladministration in state administration free of charge.
Keep a short written log of each contact: the date, the channel you used, the name of the agent and the reference number. Most government service complaint processes ask for exactly that history, and having it ready is usually the difference between a fast resolution and starting over.
Avoiding fake Department of Trade, Industry and Competition contact numbers
Contact details for well known South African brands are a common target for impersonation. Numbers that look official appear in search ads, social media replies and cloned websites, and the person answering is not the Department of Trade, Industry and Competition.
- Reach Department of Trade, Industry and Competition through the official site at thedtic.gov.za rather than through a number in a search advert or a social media reply.
- The Department of Trade, Industry and Competition will never ask you for your full card number, PIN, CVV, online banking password or a one time PIN. Nobody legitimate needs those to help you.
- Treat any caller who creates urgency, asks you to install remote access software, or asks you to move money to a safe account as fraudulent, and end the call.
- If you are unsure whether a call was genuine, hang up and dial the official number yourself rather than calling back a number the caller gave you.
Related contact pages
Frequently asked questions
What is the Department of Trade, Industry and Competition contact number?
The routes are listed in the table above, with what each one is for. The main route is 0861 843 384. Confirm it on thedtic.gov.za before relying on it, since numbers are changed from time to time.
How do I know a Department of Trade, Industry and Competition number is genuine?
Check it against the official site at thedtic.gov.za. A number that only appears in a search advert, a social media reply or a third-party directory should not be trusted for anything involving your account, your money or your identity document.
What should I do if nobody resolves my query?
Ask for the complaint reference and the escalation path on your first call, then follow the escalation route described above. Keep the dates, agent names and reference numbers, because every formal complaint process will ask for them.
Can ContactDetails.co.za resolve this for me?
No. We are an independent directory, not the Department of Trade, Industry and Competition, and we have no access to your account. Everything here is a routing aid so that you reach the correct official channel with the right information in hand.
Is there a cost to calling these numbers?
South African 0860 and 0861 numbers are charged at a share-call or standard rate depending on your provider, and 0800 numbers are toll free from a landline. Calls from a mobile are billed at your own operator’s rate, so check your plan if cost matters.
Contact routes on this page were checked against the official Department of Trade, Industry and Competition source on 22 August 2026. If you find a detail that has changed, the official source is always the authority.