Verbatim text
legislation falling within a functional area listed in Schedule 4.
(2) National legislation that applies uniformly with regard to the country as a whole
prevails over provincial legislation if any of the following conditions is met:
(a) The national legislation deals with a matter that cannot be regulated
effectively by legislation enacted by the respective provinces individually. Chapter 6: Provinces
72(b) The national legislation deals with a matter that, to be dealt with effectively,
requires uniformity across the nation, and the national legislation provides
that uniformity by establishing—
(i) norms and standards;
(ii) frameworks; or
(iii) national policies.
(c) The national legislation is necessary for—
(i) the maintenance of national security;
(ii) the maintenance of economic unity;
(iii) the protection of the common market in respect of the mobility of goods,
services, capital and labour;
(iv) the promotion of economic activities across provincial boundaries;
(v) the promotion of equal opportunity or equal access to government
services; or
(vi) the protection of the environment.
(3) National legislation prevails over provincial legislation if the national legislation is
aimed at preventing unreasonable action by a province that—
(a) is prejudicial to the economic, health or security interests of another province
or the country as a whole; or
(b) impedes the implementation of national economic policy.
(4) When there is a dispute concerning whether national legislation is necessary for
a purpose set out in subsection (2)(c) and that dispute comes before a court for
resolution, the court must have due regard to the approval or the rejection of the
legislation by the National Council of Provinces.
(5) Provincial legislation prevails over national legislation if subsection (2) or (3) does
not apply.
(6) A law made in terms of an Act of Parliament or a provincial Act can prevail only if
that law has been approved by the National Council of Provinces.
(7) If the National Council of Provinces does not reach a decision within 30 days of
its first sitting after a law was referred to it, that law must be considered for all
purposes to have been approved by the Council.
(8) If the National Council of Provinces does not approve a law referred to in subsection
(6), it must, within 30 days of its decision, forward reasons for not approving the
law to the authority that referred the law to it. Chapter 6: Provinces
Other conflicts
What this means
- The index files this text under article 146 of the Constitution of South Africa.
- The index files it under the chapter heading “CHAPTER 6 — PROVINCES”.
- The passage runs to about 394 words.
- Read plainly, it mentions equality and non-discrimination — it requires equal treatment or forbids discrimination (the words used: “equal”).
The row’s stored title is a body fragment, not a heading (“(1) This section applies to a conflict between national legislation and provincial”), so it is not used as the provision’s title here.
The index gives this passage an article number but stores a body fragment where a heading would be, so the number could not be cross-checked against the text. Check it against the official Constitution before relying on it in a citation.
This is a mechanical reading aid generated from the text above by matching words in it. It is not legal advice, not a lawyer’s interpretation, and not a substitute for the provision itself.
How to cite this
Constitution of South Africa, article 146, Portable Lawyer, https://www.portablelawyer.app/provision/9f0d4f75-32d2-4036-a5c0-9eb580cf369d (accessed 25 October 2026).
Canonical URL: https://www.portablelawyer.app/provision/9f0d4f75-32d2-4036-a5c0-9eb580cf369d
Accessed 25 October 2026.
Link to the canonical URL above, not to a #section-… fragment on the jurisdiction page — the fragment is a scroll position, this URL is the provision.
Machine-readable versions