City of Tshwane Offers Black Friday Debt Relief To Residents And Businesses

A Festive Incentive For A Financial Fix

The City of Tshwane is turning to a “Black Friday sale” of a different kindone that’s not about shoes, gadgets, or appliances, but unpaid bills. In a bold move to boost revenue collection, the city has announced a 100% interest discount for residents and businesses who settle their outstanding municipal accounts between 1 and 30 November 2025.

According to Mayor Nasiphi Moya, the campaign aims to motivate debtors to pay up while giving them some financial breathing room. “We are determined to increase the city’s revenue collection, particularly following an upbeat performance in October,” she said.

How The Black Friday Special Works

Residents and businesses can take advantage of the offer by visiting their nearest municipal office or contacting the city’s credit control or debt collection departments via email.

The city has made it clear that while it’s offering this temporary relief as an incentive, its revenue collection teams are still actively pursuing defaulters. In recent months, the metro’s “revenue recovery operations” have ramped up across Pretoria, targeting households and companies with millions in arrears.

Record Collections, But With Controversy

In October alone, Tshwane collected an impressive R4 billion in revenuea figure the city attributes largely to its controversial “cleaning levy”. The R200 charge, added to the accounts of residents and businesses using private refuse collectors, was challenged in court by lobby group AfriForum and declared invalid.

While the city appealed the ruling, it reinstated the levy in October after temporarily crediting accounts in August and September. For many residents, this meant their bills more than doubledan unwelcome shock that helped drive up total collections but also sparked frustration.

Social media reaction has been divided. Some residents praised the city’s firm stance on non-payment, while others accused officials of “creative accounting” and using the levy as a hidden tax.

The Financial Balancing Act

Tshwane’s finances are on a knife’s edge. Beyond the legal uncertainty of the cleaning levy, the city also faces pressure from a ruling by the SA Local Government Bargaining Council, which ordered it to pay backdated 3.5% salary increases for the 2021/22 financial year.

The decision follows years of disputes over wage affordability. Earlier this year, Tshwane won a Labour Court case exempting it from paying 5.6% increases for 2023/24, but the new ruling could cost the city an estimated R2 billion within six months.

Despite these setbacks, the city has opted not to appeal the decision and plans to engage unions to chart a sustainable way forward.

Encouraging Payment Before Pressure Mounts

For now, officials are pinning their hopes on the November campaign to improve cash flow. The city has already recovered nearly R40 million this month and arranged another R8.7 million in payment plans with account holders.

Still, the appeal of a “Black Friday” discount on debt may be as much about optics as revenue. With financial pressure mounting and court battles unresolved, Tshwane is offering residents a chance to clean their slatesbefore the city’s own books come due.

{Source:Business Tech}

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