What the National Bargaining Council for the Road Freight and Logistics Industry expects every month: who registers, what the online return covers, the 20th deadline, the fund and levy rates, the penalties, and how to build the return from payroll.
The NBCRFLI is a bargaining council established under LRA s.27 for the Road Freight and Logistics Industry. Its Main Collective Agreement runs from 1 March 2025 to 28 February 2027 and is extended to non-parties by the Minister of Employment and Labour under LRA s.32, so it binds you whether or not you belong to an employer body.
Clause 1 defines the industry as employers and employees associated, for hire or reward, in transporting goods by motor transport, in storing goods (receiving, packing, despatching, clearing) where that is ancillary to the transport, and in temporary employment services supplying staff for those activities. That takes in general freight, furniture removal, courier, cash-in-transit and petroleum tanker work. Work under the Transnet and Motor Ferry Industry bargaining councils is excluded. An owner-driver with one vehicle must still register and keep to the hours-of-work limits (clause 1(4)). Moving only your own goods is not "for hire or reward"; moving goods for a fee, even as a sideline, usually is.
Clause 45 gives you 30 days from entering the industry to file an Annexure A.1 statement for each establishment: trade name, company and VAT numbers, banking and contact details, addresses, director or member details, any pension or provident fund you run, the registration number and gross vehicle mass of each vehicle, and an employee list with ID numbers, start dates, wages and union membership. The council issues a Certificate of Registration (Annexure A.2) and a levy number. Report changes, including a s.197 transfer of staff, within 30 days. Register and load employees on the E-Business Portal at nbcrflionline.org.za.
Clause 53 ties the online return to clauses 19, 29, 30, 54 and 69 and to the Wellness Fund in Schedule 4. Every rate below applies to the employee's normal basic weekly wage.
| Item | Clause | Who pays | Rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| Leave Pay Fund | 29 | Employer | 25% under 5 years' service; 28.34% from 5 to under 10 years; 33.3% from 10 years |
| Holiday Pay Bonus Fund | 30 | Employer | 36.08%; funds the guaranteed 13th cheque (4.33 weeks) paid in December |
| Sick and Absence Fund | 19 | Employer | 20% (weekly basic wage × 9 ÷ 45) |
| Council levy | 69 | Employee and employer | 0.4% from the employee plus 0.4% from the employer (0.075% each for extended bargaining unit staff) |
| Wellness Fund | Schedule 4 | Employee and employer | 1% from the employee plus 1% of the monthly basic wage bill from the employer |
| Union subscriptions | 54 | Employee | Deducted from party-union members and paid over with the return |
Fund contributions cover grades 1 to 6 and are payable irrespective of days worked (clauses 19(2), 29(1)(c) and 30(1)(d)); you may claim a portion back for unauthorised absence, with proof (clause 24(3)). Note that the employer's fund contributions count as the employee's remuneration for PAYE (clauses 19(13), 29(5) and 30(6)), and that the agreement's own leave clause (clause 18(2): 21, 23 or 26 consecutive days by length of service) applies ahead of the bare BCEA s.20 minimum.
The council return does not collect retirement contributions, but the Main Agreement does impose an obligation: Schedule 5 item 6 requires every employee for whom minimum wages are prescribed to be a member of a provident or pension fund registered under the Pension Funds Act, and makes non-payment of deducted contributions a criminal offence under the Financial Sector Regulation Act 9 of 2017. Clause 45(1)(l) requires you to declare the fund on registration. The industry fund most employers use is the Transport Sector Retirement Fund (formerly the Road Freight and Logistics Industry Provident Fund, renamed 2017), whose rules set 10% from the member and 10% from the employer, paid to the fund directly, not via the council return.
Clause 53(5) makes online submission compulsory. The return lists each employee by name, ID number and category code, with part-time staff flagged "P" and relief staff "R" (Schedule 4, item 2(2)(b)). You are compliant only once the council has both the return and the payment (clause 53(2)). A return that does not cross-cast, shows a wrong contribution or does not match the payment is "defective" and sent back, and the delay counts against you (clause 53(3)). Sick leave applications and medical certificates go through the same portal within 5 working days of the employee's return to work (clause 19(12)).
Every contribution clause uses one date: the return and payment are due by the 20th of the month following the month the wages relate to (clauses 19(1), 25(1), 54(2)(b) and 69(2); Schedule 4, item 2(2)). September wages are returned and paid by 20 October. Diarise the 20th next to the 7th for EMP201 and UIF; our employer compliance calendar lists both.
Clause 74 routes applications to an Independent Exemptions Body, which decides within 30 days, with an appeal under LRA s.32(3)(e). An exemption does not clear returns already late.
Schedule 2 grades drivers by the gross vehicle mass (or gross combination mass) of the vehicle driven, not by job title. The council's circular of 3 February 2026 sets these general freight and furniture removal minimums for 1 March 2026 to 28 February 2027:
| Grade | Driver category | Vehicle mass | Minimum weekly wage from 1 March 2026 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2 (B1) | Light motor vehicle driver; motorcycle or tricycle driver | Up to 3,500 kg | R2,495.03 |
| 3 (B2) | Medium motor vehicle driver, rigid or articulated | Over 3,500 kg up to 9,000 kg | R3,016.09 |
| 4 (B3) | Heavy and extra-heavy motor vehicle driver, rigid or articulated | Over 9,000 kg up to 25,000 kg | R3,383.37 |
| 5 (B4) | Ultra-heavy motor vehicle driver | Over 25,000 kg | R4,031.63 |
| 6 (C1) | Abnormal load driver; petroleum tanker driver | Per definition | R4,909.20; R4,112.66 |
Courier has its own table (grade 2 R2,476.98; grade 3 R2,998.06). Staff employed before 1 March 2026 also get a 6% across-the-board increase on actual wages. Allowances (night shift, subsistence, cross-border, dangerous goods) are paid on top of basic wage. Drivers need a valid Professional Driving Permit; the employer refunds the renewal fee on proof (clause 59(7)). Rates change each March; check the current table on nbcrfli.org.za.
See the bargaining council returns guide for the general pattern, the MIBCO, MEIBC and NBCCI guides for other councils, and the labour law compliance checklist.
By the 20th of the month following the month the wages relate to (clauses 19(1), 25(1), 54(2)(b) and 69(2)). Both the online return and the payment must reach the council by then; one without the other is non-compliance under clause 53(2).
Interest runs at 2% per month or part of a month from the due date (clause 72), you carry the council's recovery costs (clause 71), and after two reminders the council issues a compliance order and refers the matter to arbitration. Arrears also block a Letter of Good Standing.
No, but membership is still compulsory. The council return does not collect retirement contributions; Schedule 5 item 6 of the Main Agreement requires every employee for whom minimum wages are prescribed to belong to a provident or pension fund registered under the Pension Funds Act, and non-payment of deducted contributions is a criminal offence under the Financial Sector Regulation Act 9 of 2017. Most employers use the Transport Sector Retirement Fund (formerly the Road Freight and Logistics Industry Provident Fund, renamed 2017), whose rules set 10% from the member and 10% from the employer, paid to the fund directly.
It follows the vehicle's gross vehicle mass, not the job title: up to 3,500 kg is grade 2; over 3,500 kg to 9,000 kg is grade 3; over 9,000 kg to 25,000 kg (heavy and extra-heavy) is grade 4; over 25,000 kg is grade 5; abnormal load and petroleum tanker drivers are grade 6.
Compliance Radar builds NBCRFLI returns from your payroll export (Sage, VIP or Pastel): it maps each employee to the council's category code, applies the current rates and returns the pack as a ZIP, with the 20th on your reminder calendar. See how it works on the home page or contact us.
See it on a payroll like yours.
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