South Africa’s biggest counterfeit busts of 2025

South African authorities have confiscated hundreds of millions of rand’s worth of counterfeit goods across the country as they attempt to crack down on the illicit trade.

The biggest bust of the year occurred at the Durban harbour during a routine cargo profiling exercise, when officers discovered that two shipping containers were falsely labelled as containing furniture.

Upon closer inspection, authorities discovered that the containers were transporting a vast array of counterfeit goods, valued at approximately R400 million.

While the smuggling of counterfeit clothing and footwear is common in South Africa, the products seized also included eyewear, kitchenware, and jewellery.

Photos supplied by the police show tightly wrapped packages containing designer shoes, handbags, sunglasses, and even Springbok rugby jerseys.

Authorities have stated that preliminary investigations suggest the shipment likely originated from an Asian country and was shipped to South Africa under false documentation.

Not taking the trade of counterfeit goods lightly, police dealt another major blow to the industry when they targeted more than 100 shops across the North West in September.

The operation involved authorities executing search-and-seizure warrants in accordance with the Counterfeit Goods Act 37 of 1997.

Police seized over 86,000 counterfeit items worth a reported R260 million from stores in Coligny, Klerksdorp, Lichtenburg, Mahikeng, Potchefstroom, Rustenburg, Ventersdorp, and Zeerust.

These included designer-branded clothing, sports apparel, footwear, bags, caps, toys, and consumables. Police also confiscated counterfeit medicines valued at more than R45,000.

In July, a three-week operation conducted in Mbombela, Pretoria, and across Limpopo resulted in the seizure of more than R156 million worth of counterfeit goods.

This included more than 23,000 items such as clothing, shoes, bags, caps, and watches, as well as counterfeit jewellery, sunglasses, perfumes, cosmetics, and pharmaceuticals.

A similar province-wide crackdown took place earlier in the year, where authorities targeted several shops in Limpopo and KwaZulu-Natal.

According to the National Counterfeit Goods Unit, police seized more than 70,000 counterfeit items valued at over R90 million during these raids.

These included cellphones and accessories, cigarettes, toys, clothing, and consumables. This resulted in the arrest of 37 suspects of various nationalities.

Other illicit industries

The trade of counterfeit alcohol products is also becoming increasingly prevalent in South Africa. Authorities recently raided an operation manufacturing counterfeit Smirnoff products.

This included a bottle-blowing machine, a high-pressure air compressor, an evaporating temperature machine, an industrial chiller, and fine compressor air filters.

It not only highlights the sophistication of counterfeit operations in the country, but also the danger to those who consume it.

According to a report by Euromonitor titled Understanding the Illicit Alcohol Market in South Africa, illicit alcohol makes up 18% of the South African market, which is nearly one in five drinks.

The Drinks Federation South Africa (DF-SA) recently reported that the volume of illicit alcohol in South Africa increased by 55% from 2017 to 2024, reaching 773,424 hectolitres, equivalent to 77 million litres.

However, the increase in the fiscal loss has been far greater, growing from R6.4 billion in 2017 to R16.5 billion in 2024.

According to DF-SA CEO Richard Rivett-Carnac, this not only threatens the health of many South Africans but their livelihoods as well.

“This is not just a public health concern, but a direct threat to fiscal revenues and formal businesses that contribute significantly to the economy and job creation,” he said.

“The legal alcohol sector supports around one in 31 jobs and generates over R100 billion in tax revenue annually. When illicit traders avoid tax, undercut the market, and exploit vulnerable consumers, we all lose.”

The sale of illicit cigarettes has also been highlighted as a significant concern.

According to a study commissioned by the South African unit of British American Tobacco (BAT South Africa) and conducted by Ipsos, the country loses approximately R28 billion annually from the trade in illicit cigarettes.

In April 2024, the SA Tobacco Transformation Alliance (SATTA) estimated that South Africans smoked 37 billion cigarettes in 2023, yet SARS only collected tax on 13 billion.

SATTA spokesperson Francois van der Merwe stated that the illicit cigarette market now accounts for between 65% and 70% of the total market, the highest in the world.

Data shared by SARS Commissioner Edward Kieswetter during a presentation on 22 October 2025 shows that actual collections began to fall behind estimated collections when smoking was banned during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Since the 2020/21 financial year, when Health Minister Nkosazana Dlamini Zuma banned the sale of cigarettes, the estimated collection of tax revenue for cigarettes has far exceeded what SARS collects.