COIDA: Claiming Compensation for an Injury at Work

COIDA, the Compensation for Occupational Injuries and Diseases Act 130 of 1993, is South Africa's no-fault system for workers who are injured, fall ill or die because of their work. As of October 2026 it reads differently from the version most guides describe: the COID Amendment Act 10 of 2022 came into force on 23 January 2026, and new benefit figures apply to accidents from 1 April 2026.

Information last verified on 25 October 2026. This page provides general legal information about South African law and does not constitute legal advice.

What changed in 2026

The COID Amendment Act 10 of 2022 was assented to in April 2023 (Government Gazette 48431, 17 April 2023) but had no commencement date for almost three years. It was brought into force on 23 January 2026, the date Proclamation Notice 306 was published in Government Gazette 53990 (it was signed on 21 January).

The proclamation did not switch everything on at once. It fixes these dates:

These are section numbers of the Amendment Act, not of COIDA itself. The 1 April 2026 group includes the new financial penalties for an employer who reports an accident late (Amendment Act section 19) or fails to pay temporary disablement compensation for the first three months (section 28(c)).

One practical warning: the consolidated COIDA text on SAFLII, last checked in May 2025, still marks the 2022 amendments as "uncommenced". It is out of date on these points, and anyone reading it should check the Amendment Act alongside it.

Who is covered

COIDA covers an "employee", meaning a person who works under a contract of service, apprenticeship or learnership with an employer, whether the contract is written, oral or implied. It expressly includes casual employees employed for the employer's business. The amended definition also refers to temporary employment services instead of "labour brokers".

Domestic workers are covered. The original Act excluded "a domestic employee employed as such in a private household". In Mahlangu v Minister of Labour [2020] ZACC 24 (19 November 2020), the Constitutional Court confirmed that this exclusion was unconstitutional and ordered that its ruling has "immediate and retrospective effect from 27 April 1994". A domestic worker injured or killed on duty at any time since that date, or the worker's dependants, may in principle claim from the Compensation Fund. The Amendment Act adds a deadline for these older cases: under its section 63(1), domestic employees and employers must report or submit a claim in the prescribed manner "within three years from the date of the commencement" of the Amendment Act for an accident that happened before it commenced. That is three years from commencement (23 January 2026).

The Amendment Act also deletes the domestic-worker exclusion from the text. Because of Mahlangu, the exact commencement of that deletion makes no practical difference. For the wider rules on domestic employment, see domestic worker rights in South Africa.

What counts as an injury on duty

The amended Act defines an "accident" as "an incident or occurrence arising out of and in the course of an employee's employment and resulting in a personal injury, illness, occupational disease or the death of the employee". Under section 22(1), an employee who meets with an accident resulting in disablement or death, or the employee's dependants, is entitled to the benefits the Act provides.

Some points that often cause confusion:

• Fault does not matter in the usual way. The amended section 22(3) states that compensation is payable even where the accident is attributable to the employee's serious and wilful misconduct. Before the amendment, that kind of misconduct could bar compensation unless it caused serious disablement, or caused death and left a wholly financially dependent dependant.
• Travel arranged by the employer. Under the amended section 22(5), being conveyed by or on behalf of the employer "by means of any mode of transportation in furtherance of the business of the employer" is treated as being in the course of employment. The old wording was narrower.
• Short absences. No periodical payments are made for temporary disablement lasting three days or less (section 22(2)). For short absences, the sick leave rules may be relevant; see sick leave in South Africa.

Occupational diseases

Under section 65(1), an employee may claim for a disease listed in Schedule 3 to the Act that arose out of and in the course of employment. A disease that is not on the list can also be compensated if the employee proves that it arose out of and in the course of employment.

The employee gives written notice of the disease to the employer as soon as possible after it begins (section 68). The employer must then report it within 14 days.

The bar on suing your employer, and increased compensation

Section 35(1) is the trade-off at the centre of COIDA. No action lies by an employee or a dependant against the employer for damages for an occupational injury or disease resulting in disablement or death, and the employer has no liability for compensation except under the Act.

That does not leave a worker without a remedy where the employer was careless. Under section 56(1), if the accident or disease was due to the negligence of the employer, or of certain people acting for the employer (such as a manager, a person with the power to hire and fire, or the person in charge of machinery), the employee may apply to the Commissioner for increased compensation on top of the normal amount.

• The application must be made within 24 months of the accident or of the start of the occupational disease. The Commissioner may extend this by up to 12 months for good reason (section 56(3)).
• The increased compensation plus the normal compensation may not exceed the employee's actual financial (pecuniary) loss (section 56(4)(b)).
• This is an application to the Commissioner, not a court case against the employer.

A claim against a third party is different. If someone other than the employer caused the injury, for example another motorist, section 36 allows the employee to claim COIDA compensation and also take action against that third party.

Reporting the accident and the time limits

The employee's notice

Section 38(1) requires written or verbal notice of the accident to be given to the employer, by or on behalf of the employee, as soon as possible after it happens. A failure to give notice does not automatically end the claim: it is not a bar if the employer knew of the accident, or if the Commissioner finds the failure caused no serious prejudice.

The employer's report

Under section 39(1), the employer must report the accident to the Commissioner in the prescribed manner within seven days of receiving notice of it or otherwise learning of it.

From 1 April 2026, an employer that fails to report is no longer only "guilty of an offence". The amended section 39 makes it liable to a penalty of 10% of the actual or estimated annual earnings for that year, and the Commissioner may also impose a penalty equal to the full compensation payable plus interest from the date of the accident. (Employers referred to in section 84(1)(a)(i) to (iii) are excluded from both penalties.)

Lodging the claim, and when the right lapses

Two different sections set two different periods, and they are often mixed up:

• Section 43 (lodging): a claim must be lodged within 12 months of the accident, or of the death in a fatal case. A claim lodged later can still be considered where the accident was reported under section 39.
• Section 44 (lapse): this is the provision that ends the right to benefits. The amended section 44 says the right lapses if the accident "is not brought to the attention of the Commissioner within three years from the date of such accident". Before the amendment, the right lapsed if the accident was not brought to the attention of the Commissioner, the employer or the mutual association within 12 months.

For domestic workers, section 63(1) of the Amendment Act sets a transitional rule: an accident before commencement must be reported or claimed within three years from commencement (23 January 2026). No transitional rule for other employees was found, so whether the three-year period helps someone else whose accident happened before 2026 has not been confirmed for this page. The safest course is to make sure the accident is reported and the claim lodged as early as possible.

Benefits and the current figures

Compensation amounts are set each year in Schedule 4 to the Act. The schedule now in force covers accidents that occur, and occupational diseases diagnosed, from 1 April 2026. It was published in Government Gazette 55497 of 2 October 2026, so it applies back to 1 April 2026.

Source for every figure above: Schedule 4 as amended for accidents from 1 April 2026, Government Gazette 55497. For partial dependants, the schedule expresses the lump sum as the percentage of dependence applied to R240,547. Where a minimum and maximum appear, the actual figure depends on the employee's earnings. A disablement assessed at exactly 30% is paid as a lump sum; a pension starts at 31%.

Some further rules on payment:

• The first three months. The employer pays temporary total disablement compensation for the first three months and is then reimbursed (section 47(3)). From 1 April 2026, an employer that fails to do so is liable to a penalty of double the three months' compensation plus interest.
• Medical costs. The Fund, the employer or the licensee pays the reasonable cost of medical aid for up to two years from the accident or the start of the disease, and for longer where further treatment will reduce the disablement (section 73). The amended section 73 also lets a practitioner apply to reopen a finalised claim.
• Pensions. Under the amended Act, a monthly pension starts from the date a medical practitioner certifies that the employee has reached maximum medical intervention (the Act's term), and the Commissioner may review pension awards to reassess permanent disablement.
• Older pensions. Pensions and constant attendance allowances for accidents before 31 March 2026, and diseases diagnosed before then, were increased by 4.1% with effect from 1 April 2026 (Notice 4182 of 2026, Government Gazette 55497).

COIDA payments are separate from the UIF. For how the UIF illness benefit works, see UIF explained.

The earnings ceiling: an employer figure, not a benefit cap

Notice 3910 of 2026 (Government Gazette 54577, 24 April 2026) sets R668,000 per employee per year as the maximum earnings on which an employer's assessment is calculated, effective from 1 March 2026. The same notice sets a minimum assessment of R1,621 for employers and R560 for domestic employers.

This figure governs what employers pay into the system. It is not the limit on what an injured worker receives. The worker's benefits are limited by the Schedule 4 maximums in the table above. The two figures happen to line up: R41,750 is 75% of monthly earnings of about R55,667, which is R668,000 a year, so earnings above that level do not increase the benefit.

Objecting to a decision

The amended section 91(1) says any person affected by a decision of the Commissioner may lodge an objection with the Commissioner, in the prescribed manner, within 12 months of the decision. The objection is decided by a presiding officer sitting with three assessors.

Before the amendment the period was 180 days, and many guides still give that figure. Whether a decision made before the amendment took effect is governed by the old or the new period has not been confirmed for this page. Anyone near either deadline should lodge the objection promptly and take advice.

The Compensation Fund and the mutual associations

Most claims are administered by the Compensation Fund, run by the Compensation Commissioner in the Department of Employment and Labour. The Amendment Act replaces the term "mutual association" with "licensee", meaning a legal person licensed under section 30 to carry on this business.

Where an employer is covered through a licensee instead of the Fund, that body handles the claim, and the employer can confirm which applies. This page does not cover which employers or industries fall under each licensee.

Claiming online: CompEasy

CompEasy (compeasy.labour.gov.za) is the Compensation Fund's online claims management system. The Fund's instructions for first-time users are to register for departmental access at cfonline.labour.gov.za first, and then complete the external user registration on CompEasy.

The site notes that access to CompEasy is reviewed annually and may be restricted. Support queries go to CompEasySupport@labour.gov.za.

For other labour topics, see the South Africa labour law section, or the South Africa laws hub.

This guide is general legal information, not legal advice. For advice on your own situation, consult an attorney, or contact Legal Aid South Africa (0800 110 110) if you cannot afford one.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is COIDA?

COIDA is the Compensation for Occupational Injuries and Diseases Act 130 of 1993. It provides no-fault compensation, medical costs and pensions to employees injured or made ill at work, and to the dependants of employees who die as a result. Employers fund it through annual assessments paid to the Compensation Fund or a licensed mutual association.

Can I sue my employer for an injury at work in South Africa?

Generally not. Section 35 of COIDA bars an employee or dependant from claiming damages from the employer for an occupational injury or disease. If the employer or a manager was negligent, the employee may apply to the Commissioner for increased compensation under section 56, normally within 24 months of the accident. A claim against a third party, such as another driver, is still possible under section 36.

How long do I have to claim COIDA?

Section 43 says a claim must be lodged within 12 months of the accident or death, but a late claim can still be considered if the accident was reported under section 39. The outer limit is section 44: under the amended wording, the right to benefits lapses if the accident is not brought to the Commissioner's attention within three years. For domestic workers, section 63(1) of the Amendment Act requires a claim for an accident before commencement to be reported or submitted within three years from commencement (23 January 2026). How the new period applies to other employees' earlier accidents is not settled.

Are domestic workers covered by COIDA?

Yes. In Mahlangu v Minister of Labour [2020] ZACC 24 the Constitutional Court confirmed that excluding domestic workers in private households was unconstitutional, with effect back to 27 April 1994. For an accident before the COID Amendment Act commenced, section 63(1) of that Act requires domestic employees and employers to report or submit the claim within three years from commencement (23 January 2026). Domestic employers pay a minimum assessment, set at R560 from 1 March 2026.

How much does COIDA pay while I am off work?

For accidents on or after 1 April 2026, temporary total disablement is paid at 75% of monthly earnings at the time of the accident, pro rata for the days off, with a maximum of R41,750 and a minimum of R5,848 a month. No periodical payment is made for temporary disablement lasting three days or less. The employer pays for the first three months and is reimbursed.

Is R668,000 the maximum COIDA payout?

No. R668,000 a year is the maximum earnings per employee on which an employer's assessment is calculated, from 1 March 2026 (Notice 3910 of 2026). The limits on what a worker receives come from Schedule 4, for example R41,750 a month for temporary total disablement and R467,617 as the maximum permanent disablement lump sum for accidents from 1 April 2026.

Does COIDA pay if the accident was my own fault?

COIDA is a no-fault system. The amendment to section 22(3) states that compensation is payable even where the accident is attributable to the employee's serious and wilful misconduct. Before the amendment, misconduct of that kind could bar compensation unless it caused serious disablement, or caused death and left a wholly financially dependent dependant.

How do I object to a COIDA decision?

Under the amended section 91(1), any person affected by a decision of the Commissioner may lodge an objection with the Commissioner in the prescribed manner within 12 months of the decision. The objection is heard by a presiding officer with three assessors. Before 2026 the period was 180 days, and whether that older period still governs a decision made before the amendment is not settled.

What is CompEasy?

CompEasy (compeasy.labour.gov.za) is the Compensation Fund's online claims management system. First-time users register for departmental access at cfonline.labour.gov.za before registering on CompEasy, and the Fund states that access is reviewed annually and may be restricted. Support is through CompEasySupport@labour.gov.za.