EME vs QSE: Your Turnover Has Passed the Threshold. What Now?

Passed R10 Million: Moving From EME to QSE

What happens next depends on your black ownership.

1. You’re at least 51% black-owned

You can still use an affidavit, but you need to switch templates. The EME affidavit confirms turnover of R10 million or less, so it no longer reflects your business. Instead, complete the QSE affidavit for your sector, confirming turnover between R10 million and R50 million. Your B-BBEE level carries over unchanged.

You can also choose to be verified on the QSE scorecard instead. That only makes sense if you want to improve on your affidavit level, for example by earning full points on Skills Development or Enterprise and Supplier Development.

 2. You’re less than 51% black-owned

This is where the affidavit stops working altogether. As an EME you were automatically Level 4, whatever your ownership. As a QSE, that automatic level falls away. You must be measured on the QSE scorecard and verified by a SANAS-accredited verification agency.

The QSE scorecard covers all five elements:

• Ownership
• Management Control
• Skills Development
• Enterprise and Supplier Development
• Socio-Economic Development

Ownership, Skills Development and Enterprise and Supplier Development are priority elements. A QSE must meet the sub-minimum on Ownership plus either Skills Development or Enterprise and Supplier Development. Miss them and your level is discounted by one.

The practical risk: a business that was a comfortable Level 4 as an EME can come out lower, or even non-compliant, on its first QSE verification if it hasn’t been spending on skills, suppliers or socio-economic development.

Passed R50 Million: Moving From QSE to Generic

Above R50 million, no affidavit applies, even if you’re 100% black-owned. You’re measured as a Generic enterprise on the full B-BBEE scorecard and need a verification certificate from a SANAS-accredited agency.

The bar is higher than for a QSE. A large enterprise must meet the sub-minimum on all three priority elements (Ownership, Skills Development and Enterprise and Supplier Development), not just two. Targets and weightings also differ from the QSE scorecard, so expect more detailed evidence on payroll, procurement spend and development contributions.

When Does the Change Kick In?

Your category is set by your latest completed financial year, not by a good month or a forecast. The affidavit asks for the financial year-end you used and that year’s total revenue, taken from your financial statements or management accounts. That means:

• Crossing the line mid-year doesn’t change your status that day. It changes when that financial year closes and its figures become your “latest financial year”.
• Your next affidavit or certificate must reflect the new figures. Once your year-end numbers show turnover above R10 million, you can’t sign a new EME affidavit.
• Verification looks back. A QSE or Generic verification measures what you did during the financial year under review. If you’re approaching a threshold, the year you cross it is the year to start building your scorecard, not the year after.

Check Your Sector Code First

R10 million and R50 million are the thresholds in the Generic B-BBEE Code. Several sector codes set their own, often lower, thresholds, so you can outgrow your affidavit well before R10 million. For example:

• Property Sector Code: the EME threshold for estate agents is R2.5 million.
• Construction Sector Code: only contractors below R3 million and built-environment professionals below R1.8 million may use the construction affidavit. Other construction companies need a certificate.
• Transport Sector Code: transport companies can’t use an affidavit at all.

If your business falls under a sector code, use that code’s thresholds and its own affidavit. A generic EME or QSE affidavit won’t be accepted in its place.

What to Do Now

1. Confirm your turnover
Take total revenue (not profit) from the financial statements or management accounts for your latest completed financial year.

2. Confirm which code applies
Generic or a sector code. This sets your thresholds and the affidavit or scorecard you’ll use.

3. Confirm your black ownership
Check your share register and how ownership flows through any holding entities. If you rely on the modified flow-through principle, you can’t use an affidavit.

4. Choose your route

• Turnover R10m to R50m and 51%+ black-owned: download the QSE affidavit and have it commissioned.
• Turnover R10m to R50m and under 51% black-owned: book a QSE verification.
• Turnover above R50m: book a Generic verification.

5. Gather your evidence early
Verification needs ownership documents, payroll and skills spend, procurement records, and development contributions for the year under review. Our renewal guide lists the documents, and our cost guide explains what affects the price.

6. Tell your clients
Many customers use your B-BBEE level in their own procurement scores. Send them your new affidavit or certificate as soon as you have it, so you don’t drop off approved supplier lists.