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be made available to institutions the next business day after your funds
have been cleared.
2.2 If you apply by submitting a hard copy application form and you pay the
administration fee, your application takes at least two weeks after we receive your application form and payment before it is available to the institution/s to which you have applied.
3. Complete and submit your online application as soon as possible on our website (www.cao.ac.za).
4. The CAO processes applications for member institutions from 01 March for the following year's January (First Semester) intake. The CAO processes applications for member institutions that have a Second Semester intake from 01 August for the following year’s July (Second Semester) intake.
5. For TVET College applications, contact the TVET college directly.
6. All supporting documents must be uploaded on our website
(www.cao.ac.za). We do not accept hard copy or emailed documents.
6.1. Ensure that documents are clear and legible. Illegible documents could
delay or jeopardise the selection process at institutions.
7. The earlier in the year you apply, the earlier you are considered for a place.
8. Your biographical details (ID number and Full Name and Surname) must be
an exact match with your details on your DBE Final Grade 12 Examination. If they differ, we will not be able to download your final examination results from the DBE database and match them to your application information at the institution to which you have applied.
9. An application is considered to be valid only once the full application (online or hard copy), including the programme choices, signed Declaration and Informed Consent (u18’s) as well as the full administration fee have been received by the CAO. Only then will your valid application be processed and made available to institutions.
10. The official Received Date for the application will be the date on which the completed/valid application – with programme choices, full payment, Signed Declaration and Informed Consent (u18’s) have been received. Only then will your valid application be processed and made available to institutions.
11. Administration and Change of Mind (COM) fees are not refundable.
1.4. IMPORTANT NOTICE AND TERMS AND CONDITIONS
12. You must supply the correct email and cell phone number as all messages are sent to you via SMS and/or email while all letters are sent to you via email.
13. Without a valid cell phone number, you will not receive any messages from the CAO or institutions to which you have applied. Without a valid email address, you may miss requests or offers made by the institution/s to which you applied.
14. The cell phone and email details we use are those on your original application or that you have since updated online AFTER you have applied. See Electronic Communications and Transactions Act, 2002 on www.gov.za regarding emailed documents.
15. Within four weeks after CAO receives your valid application, we will send you an Acknowledgement Letter by email in which the CAO acknowledges that we have received and processed your application.
16. The Acknowledgement Letter will have all the details you have provided on your application. Applicants are fully responsible for checking their acknowledgement letters and updating any errors, omissions or changes online on our website www.cao.ac.za by clicking on the ‘Update My Details’ icon so that we have the correct information.
17. If you do not inform us of errors, omissions or changes within one week after we have sent you an Acknowledgement Letter, the CAO shall accept that all the information in an Acknowledgement Letter is correct and as complete as you want it to be.
18. If you have not received an Acknowledgement Letter by the end of four weeks after you have applied and paid the full administration fee, you must contact the CAO. (See page 3 for contact details).
19. We provide your information to institutions electronically. The institutions have full and final responsibility for selection and admission decisions, not the CAO.
20. All selection and admission decision queries must be directed to the respective institution, not to the CAO. The CAO does not make selection and admission decisions.
21. Institutions will contact you directly with their selection decision. Sometimes institutions request that the CAO also convey a selection decision to an
CAO HANDBOOK ENTRY 2025 7 CAO HANDBOOK ENTRY 2024