The Central Applications Office (CAO) in Durban does not admit anyone. It collects one application and one fee, then passes your choices to the KwaZulu-Natal institutions that decide. That split matters for late applicants: the CAO’s rules tell you what a late application costs and how it gets flagged, while each university decides whether it will read a late application at all. This page covers the CAO side for January 2027 entry and lists what each member university has said so far.
The CAO handles first-year applications for four public universities: the Durban University of Technology (DUT), Mangosuthu University of Technology (MUT), the University of KwaZulu-Natal (UKZN) and the University of Zululand (UniZulu). It also takes applications for 11 private colleges. Applications for 2027 have been processed since 1 March 2026, according to the CAO Handbook 2027 Entry.
Two dates decide what a late CAO application costs
Every programme in the handbook has its own closing date. Apply after it, and the CAO marks that choice “Late Application”. The fee does not jump on that day, though. Handbook rule 12 sets one single date for the late administration fee, no matter when an individual programme closed:
- Up to 31 October 2026: South African applicants pay R250 and international applicants R300, even for a choice that already carries a late flag.
- From 1 November 2026: the fee rises to R470 for South Africans and R580 for international applicants. The CAO counts the date your payment arrives, not the date you filled in the form.
- Changing choices later: a Change of Mind costs R140 and covers up to six programme changes in one request.
The handbook’s calendar adds that late applications for selected DUT, MUT and UKZN programmes opened on 1 October 2026, the day after most of their on-time closing dates. The CAO Contact Centre closes on 30 November 2026, but the online services and call centre stay available after that.
A late flag means you wait at the back of the queue
Rule 10 of the handbook spells out the trade-off. A late choice is still sent to the institution, but the institution may look at it only once it has worked through every on-time applicant, and only if places remain. The CAO’s 2027 Entry FAQs put it plainly: institutions handle late applications in different ways. Paying R470 therefore buys you a place in the queue, not a place at university.
Some choices never reach that queue. Programmes noted “No Applications will be considered if received after the programme closing date” switch to the status “Applications Closed” when a late application or payment arrives. The handbook names UKZN’s Health Sciences programmes as the main example. UKZN’s Medicine (MBChB) closed on 30 June 2026, and several UKZN B Ed packages carry the same no-late note for their 30 September closing date. Read the Notes column for every choice before you pay.
Where each CAO university stands for 2027
- UniZulu: every UniZulu programme still takes on-time applications through the CAO until 31 October 2026. After that, its registration FAQ sends late applicants back to the CAO website. Use the UniZulu application guide while the window is open.
- DUT: seven Applied Sciences programmes now close on 31 October, after the CAO published closing-date changes on 29 September 2026. DUT also ran its own late round in January 2026. See DUT late applications.
- MUT: its apply page says the CAO system takes late MUT submissions through 30 November. See MUT late applications.
- UKZN: it runs a separate late form of its own, outside the CAO, for selected programmes. See UKZN late applications.
The digital walk-in system: what ran last January
KwaZulu-Natal universities no longer queue applicants at the gate. Instead, after the 2025 matric results, the CAO ran what UKZN’s Registrar called a “digital (online) walk-in-system”, open until 28 February 2026, for applicants who might meet minimum requirements at KZN institutions. UKZN’s notice of 9 January 2026 added a catch: late UKZN applications could not go through that platform. That arrangement belongs to last year. As of 3 October 2026 neither the CAO handbook nor any member university has announced a digital walk-in period for January 2027, so watch cao.ac.za after the results come out in mid-January.
Missing a CAO date does not close every door. NSFAS funding applications for 2027 close on 31 October 2026, and the list of universities still open shows where else you can apply on time.
Do I pay the R470 late fee if I apply in October?
No. The CAO charges the R250 on-time fee (R300 for international applicants) for any payment that reaches it by 31 October 2026, even when the programme closed on 30 September. The R470 fee starts on 1 November 2026.
Can the CAO tell me whether a university will accept my late application?
No. The CAO only records the late status. The university decides, usually after it has placed on-time applicants, so contact the institution itself or watch your status online.