Lost your matric certificate? Choose the right replacement service
What to prepare for a lost or damaged matric certificate, and how replacement differs from combining results or changing personal details.
If your matric certificate is lost or damaged, start by choosing the correct replacement service. Replacing a missing document is different from combining examination results or correcting personal details.
Lost or damaged certificates
The Western Cape Education Department directs applicants needing a replacement National Senior Certificate, Senior Certificate or Amended Senior Certificate to Umalusi’s online replacement service.
The department says that route does not cover combining results from multiple years, changing personal particulars or obtaining certain certificates issued before November 1992.
Prepare the supporting documents
The national government’s replacement guidance lists an affidavit explaining the loss or damage, a certified identity-document copy and proof of payment. A damaged original must also be supplied; this does not apply when the certificate is lost.
Western Cape applications
For its own certificate services, WCED requires the completed application form, identification and payment evidence. Applicants should include the school or college, province, qualification year and surname used when writing the examination. This service is available only to Western Cape residents, regardless of where they obtained the qualification.
The department’s form is marked valid from 1 April 2026 to 31 March 2027. Its service page lists R180 for a certificate copy and R70 for a statement of results. These are WCED charges, not a quoted Umalusi fee.
Check the correct service’s current fee and instructions before paying. Processing and delivery arrangements differ, so do not treat one route’s waiting period as a guarantee for another.
Service information checked on 7 November 2026. This is a practical guide, not a newly announced policy.
Archive photograph: learners writing examinations. Photo: SAnews.gov.za / DOC. Source: https://www.sanews.gov.za/south-africa/basic-education-welcomes-smooth-start-2026-matric-exams . Reused under SAnews media-use policy: https://www.sanews.gov.za/user-policy . Cropped and resized for display. This file photograph does not show certificate-replacement applicants.