South Africa's biggest trade union federation wants Shein and Temu out of the country. A Shein and Temu ban was among the resolutions adopted at the Congress of South African Trade Unions' (COSATU) 15th National Congress in Johannesburg this month, after a proposal from the Southern African Clothing and Textile Workers' Union (SACTWU), Techpoint Africa's Victoria Fakiya reported on 20 October.
Neither platform has been told to leave. A union resolution is a campaign position, not law, and the government has not said whether it supports a ban. But the call puts the two Chinese-founded e-commerce apps at the centre of a fight over jobs, cheap imports and online retail in Africa's most developed consumer market.
Why COSATU wants a Shein and Temu ban
The unions argue that the platforms' growth is hurting local clothing factories and retailers. Their figures come from two places.
- Market share: a study by the Localisation Support Fund found Shein and Temu recorded about R7.3 billion in combined sales in South Africa in 2024. That is roughly 3.6% of the country's total retail market for clothing, textiles, footwear and leather, but 37.1% of online sales in that sector.
- Jobs: SACTWU warns that up to 34,000 jobs could be at risk by 2030 if the trend continues. That is a projection, not a count of jobs already lost.
The gap between those two shares is the heart of the argument. In stores, the platforms are still small. Online, where younger shoppers increasingly buy clothes, they already take more than a third of the market. Shein entered South Africa in 2020 and Temu in 2024.
The tax change that already narrowed the gap
South Africa has already tightened the rules that once made ultra-cheap parcels cheaper still. From 1 September 2024, the South African Revenue Service (SARS) applied VAT to imported goods valued below R500. Before that, low-value parcels paid a flat 20% customs duty and no VAT. Later changes to customs enforcement further cut the platforms' price advantage, according to Techpoint.
Those measures seem to be working, at least in part. A September 2026 report by World Wide Worx and research partners found that the tighter regime is pushing Shein and Temu towards local fulfilment and South African supply chains rather than shipping every order from China.
Retailers are not all on the unions' side
Michael Lawrence, executive director of the National Clothing Retail Federation, called an outright ban a "one-dimensional response to a more complicated problem." He argues the state should enforce tax rules and consumer protection law, and check whether offshore sellers meet their obligations, rather than block the apps.
Other analysts quoted in the coverage warn that a ban could push trade into informal and unregulated channels without fixing the high local production costs, from energy and transport to red tape, that make South African clothing expensive to make.
Could South Africa actually ban the apps?
Legally and politically, it would be a big step. Banning a foreign e-commerce platform outright would raise trade questions, and South Africa has so far preferred tax and customs tools. A ban would also hit consumers who use the apps because they cannot afford local prices, in a country where unemployment is high.
What is more likely in the near term:
- Stricter enforcement of VAT, customs valuation and labelling rules on imported parcels.
- Pressure for local fulfilment, so more stock sits in South African warehouses and pays duty on arrival.
- Consumer protection checks on returns, product safety and advertising.
- Support for local producers, through localisation programmes such as the one behind the Localisation Support Fund study.
What it means for African e-commerce
South Africa is not alone in testing how far it can tax or restrict foreign digital platforms. Ghana began collecting a 20% tax on Netflix, ChatGPT and cloud bills through banks this month, which we covered in our report on the Ghana digital services tax.
For African online retailers and logistics startups, the COSATU fight has two sides. Tougher rules on cross-border parcels can level the field for local sellers. But a ban-first approach could also signal to investors that market access depends on politics, not rules.
For shoppers, nothing changes yet. Both apps remain available, and prices already include VAT on most orders after the 2024 change.
What to watch
- Whether the Department of Trade, Industry and Competition or SARS responds formally to COSATU's resolution.
- Whether Shein and Temu announce more local warehousing or local sourcing in South Africa.
- New data on online clothing sales after the 2024 VAT change, which would show whether the platforms' share is still rising.
Sources: Techpoint Africa, Techpoint Digest, Victoria Fakiya, 20 October 2026; Localisation Support Fund; SACTWU; National Clothing Retail Federation; World Wide Worx.
