POPIA Notice

Protection of Personal Information (POPIA) Notice

Effective date: 14 August 2026 Last updated: 14 August 2026

This notice is for people whose personal information we process in South Africa. It sits with our Privacy Policy and explains your rights under the Protection of Personal Information Act 4 of 2013 (POPIA).

Responsible party and Information Officer

Responsible party Globally Focused Education CC, trading as Global Education 11A 7th Avenue, Parktown North, Randburg, Gauteng, 2193, South Africa Email: infoglobal@global-education.co.za Phone: +27 11 268 6545

Information Officer Nikolaos Eleftheriades, Managing Director Email: nico@global-education.co.za

You can also complain to the Information Regulator (South Africa): JD House, 27 Stiemens Street, Braamfontein, Johannesburg, 2001 complaints.IR@justice.gov.za inforegulator.org.za

What we process, and why

We process personal information to provide study-abroad consulting: enquiries, consultations, university applications, student-visa support, and related introductions (accommodation, education finance) when you ask for them.

Typical categories:

• identity and contact details

• education and application records

• passport or ID details when an application needs them

• parent, guardian, or sponsor details

• communications with you

• limited technical data from our website

Special personal information (for example race, health, or biometric data) is not something we ask for as a rule. If a university or visa authority requires a health or police document, we only handle it for that application, with your knowledge.

Lawful bases we rely on

Depending on the step:

• Contract / steps before a contract: you asked us to advise you or to lodge an application

• Consent: optional marketing, and processing for a child under 18 (consent from a competent person)

• Legitimate interests: running a secure website, assigning a counsellor, keeping a working file

• Legal obligation: tax, accounting, and any duty to keep application records

You can withdraw consent where we relied on it. That will not undo work already done, and we may still keep what the law or the university requires.

Operators and cross-border transfers

We use operators to host the website (Wix), run email and meetings (Google), and keep our client records. They may process information outside South Africa.

University applications and visa files are sent to institutions and authorities in the destination country (including the United Kingdom, Ireland, the European Union, Australia, the United States, Greece, and Zimbabwe). That transfer is the service you asked for. Those countries do not all have an adequate POPIA adequacy finding. We transfer only what the application needs.

Your rights under POPIA

You may:

1. Access the personal information we hold about you (section 23)

2. Correct or delete information that is inaccurate, excessive, or no longer needed (section 24)

3. Object to processing based on legitimate interests or for direct marketing (section 11(3) and section 69)

4. Withdraw consent where processing was based on consent

5. Complain to us and, if unresolved, to the Information Regulator

6. Not be subject to a decision based solely on automated processing that has legal effect — we do not make university or visa decisions by algorithm. Those decisions sit with the institution or authority.

To exercise a right, email infoglobal@global-education.co.za or the Information Officer, with enough detail for us to find your file. We will need to verify your identity. We will respond within a reasonable period, and not later than the time POPIA allows.

There is no fee for a standard access request unless the request is excessive or repetitive, in which case we will tell you first.

Direct marketing

We do not sell your details. We may email you about your enquiry or application. We will not send promotional mail unless you have opted in, or you are an existing client and the message is about similar services, and you can opt out on every mail.

Children

If the student is under 18, a parent or guardian (a competent person) must consent to us processing that student’s information. We prefer the parent to be the primary contact until the student is 18.

Security and breaches

We take reasonable technical and organisational steps to keep information secure. If there is a breach that creates a risk of harm, we will notify the Information Regulator and affected people as POPIA requires.

Retention

We keep enquiry records that do not become clients for up to 24 months. Client and application files are kept for the life of the matter and typically five years after, or longer if a university, visa authority, or South African law requires it. After that we delete or de-identify the file.

Changes

We may update this notice. The date at the top will change. The current version will always be on this page.

Contact

infoglobal@global-education.co.za +27 11 268 6545 11A 7th Avenue, Parktown North, Randburg, 2193