ZIMBABWEMINES
Miners walking out past the headgear of a small working at sunset

Guide

How to register a mining claim in Zimbabwe

From prospecting licence to certificate of registration, and the inspections that keep a claim alive: what the law requires, what it costs, and what changed in 2026.

Zimbabwe Mines · Checked

Prospecting licence
2 years
Largest gold block
10 ha
Register a gold block
US$150
Digital cadastre launch
Dec 2026target

Fees are from the Ministry’s current schedule; Cabinet approved some cuts in May 2026 that are not yet gazetted.

Before you start

A mining claim in Zimbabwe is registered with the Ministry of Mines and Mining Development through its Provincial Mining Director (the Act itself still uses the older title, Mining Commissioner). The process is set by the Mines and Minerals Act of 1961, and it still applies: a replacement law has been in Parliament since 2025 but had not been passed when we checked.1,2

Who can hold a claim

  • Individuals: a prospecting licence goes to an adult who is permanently resident in Zimbabwe, or to that person’s appointed agent.1,3
  • Companies: a company registered in Zimbabwe can hold mining title.4
  • Foreigners and small-scale gold: since 22 May 2026, foreign individuals, foreign-controlled companies and foreign beneficial owners may not hold small-scale gold titles — operations producing up to 20 kg of gold a month or with up to US$15 million invested. Nominee and proxy arrangements are banned too. Existing foreign operators must regularise by 1 January 2027, and the only route offered is to scale up into large-scale mining.5
  • Artisanal mining is a sector reserved for citizens under indigenisation regulations published in December 2025.6

Living outside Zimbabwe? The Act lets an appointed agent act for a licence holder. Citizens in the diaspora usually work through an agent or a Zimbabwean-registered company — confirm the arrangement with the Provincial Mining Director before anyone pegs ground in your name.

The steps, in order

  1. Get a prospecting licence

    Apply at the Provincial Mining Director’s office for the province where the ground lies. The licence lets you prospect and peg, runs until the second anniversary of issue, and cannot be sold or transferred.1,3

    An ordinary licence costs US$75 and a special licence US$563 on the current fee schedule, last set in 2021.7,8

    Document: prospecting licence

  2. Check the ground is open — and that you may go on it

    You cannot peg over existing claims, inside an exclusive prospecting order, or in reserved areas. Search the register at the Mining Director’s office (US$50), and look at the Ministry’s public cadastre map — useful, but its data is marked provisional.7,9

    The Act also keeps prospectors away from people’s homes and works: no prospecting within 450 metres of a homestead without the owner’s consent. The landowner — or, on communal land, the rural district council — has to be notified, and in some cases must agree.1

    Document: search result from the register

  3. Peg the block

    Mark the corners with pegs at least 1.2 metres above the ground and post a prospecting notice on site; for base minerals you also post a discovery notice.1,10

    A block for precious metals such as gold can be up to 10 claims, no more than 500 by 200 metres — 10 hectares. Base mineral blocks are made of claims of up to one hectare each; how many you may take depends on the licence.1,11

    Since 1 July 2025, applications must include coordinates taken by a registered mine surveyor, so they can go into the new digital cadastre.12

    Documents: prospecting notice, discovery notice (base minerals), surveyor’s coordinates

  4. Apply to register

    Take the file to the Provincial Mining Director: the prospecting licence, the notices, a letter notifying the landowner, a map at 1:25,000 in triplicate, and the surveyor’s coordinates.10,12

    Registering a precious metal block costs US$150; a base mineral block US$300 on an ordinary licence or US$563 on a special one.7 The Act sets a time limit between pegging and registering, so ask the office for it when you collect your licence and do not let the file sit.

    Once the fee is paid you receive a certificate of registration. That certificate — not a receipt, not a letter — is your title.

    Document: certificate of registration

  5. Get environmental approval before you mine

    Mining is a prescribed activity under the Environmental Management Act, so you need an Environmental Impact Assessment certificate from EMA before operations start. The process begins with a project prospectus and then a full EIA report, reviewed for a fee of 0.8% to 1.2% of the project cost; the certificate lasts two years and is then renewed.13

    After registration, mining offices also expect you to appoint a mine manager and to start filing monthly production returns.14

    Document: EIA certificate

Keeping the claim

A registered claim is not safe for ever. It stays alive only while its inspection certificates are current, and a claim without them can be forfeited.1,14

  • Inspection fees: US$75 per 5 hectares for the first inspection, then US$150 per 5 hectares a year.7 Cabinet approved cuts to inspection fees in May 2026, but no new amounts had been gazetted when we checked — see the fees guide.15
  • Production returns: file them with the provincial office before the 10th of every month, even when you produced nothing.14
  • Arrears: in August 2026 the Ministry said title holders owed about US$31 million in fees and asked those who could not pay at once to submit a payment plan.16 A July notice warned that titles could be forfeited if obligations were not regularised by 30 August; that deadline has since been reported as moved to 31 December 2026 for small and medium-scale miners.17,18
  • Selling later: signing an agreement of sale does not move the claim. The Ministry has to register the transfer, and until it does the buyer does not own it.19 The checks are in our guide to buying a claim.

What changed in 2025 and 2026

  • Survey-grade coordinates became compulsory for new applications on 1 July 2025.12
  • The digital cadastre is being built to hold about 60,000 mining titles. About 60% had been uploaded by July 2026, and the full launch is aimed at December 2026.20,21
  • Foreigners were barred from small-scale gold mining on 22 May 2026, with a deadline of 1 January 2027 to regularise by scaling up.5
  • Cabinet approved lower fees, including inspection fees, on 5 May 2026; the new amounts still have to be gazetted.15
  • A new Mines and Minerals Bill was published in the Government Gazette on 25 June 2025.22 On 8 August 2026 the National Assembly was still considering an adverse report on it from Parliament’s legal committee, so the 1961 Act still governs registration.2

This guide is not legal advice. It explains how registration works under the Mines and Minerals Act as it stood when we checked. Confirm every step, deadline and fee with your Provincial Mining Director, and use a lawyer for anything you sign.

Common questions

Can I apply for a mining claim online?

Not fully, yet. The Ministry’s public cadastre map is online, and the digital system is due to launch in full around December 2026. Until then, registration still goes through the Provincial Mining Director’s office.9,21

Can a foreigner register a gold claim in Zimbabwe?

Not a small-scale one. Since 22 May 2026, foreign individuals, foreign-controlled companies and foreign beneficial owners may not hold small-scale gold titles, defined as up to 20 kg of gold a month or up to US$15 million of investment. Large-scale mining remains open to foreign investors.5

Do I need to own the land to register a claim?

No. Mining rights are separate from the land. But you must respect the Act’s distances from homes and works, notify the landowner, and on communal land deal with the rural district council.1

How much does it cost to register a gold claim?

On the current schedule: US$75 for an ordinary prospecting licence and US$150 to register a precious metal block, plus the surveyor, the map and, before mining, EMA’s environmental approval. After that come yearly inspection fees. The full list is in our fees guide.7

How long does registration take?

No official timeline is published, and it varies by province. What slows most applications is an incomplete file — a missing notice, a map that does not match the coordinates, or an unresolved overlap — so assemble everything before you go.

What is the difference between a claim and an EPO?

A registered claim lets you mine a small block. An exclusive prospecting order gives exclusive rights to explore a much larger area for a limited period — it does not give the right to mine; that needs claims or a lease inside it.4

Sources

  1. Mines and Minerals Act [Chapter 21:05], consolidated to 1 August 2021 (Veritas)
  2. Veritas — Status of Bills as at 8 August 2026
  3. Mining Zimbabwe — Mines and Minerals Act unpacked (22 Jul 2021)
  4. Muvingi & Mugadza — An overview of mining law in Zimbabwe (18 Nov 2024)
  5. ZimLive — Zimbabwe bans foreigners from small-scale gold mining (26 May 2026)
  6. Muvingi & Mugadza — Foreign participation in reserved sectors regulations, 2025 (15 Dec 2025)
  7. Mining Zimbabwe — Zimbabwe mining fees in USD (updated 11 Apr 2026)
  8. Mining Zimbabwe — Government gazettes new mining fees (25 Jun 2021)
  9. Zimbabwe Mining Cadastre eGov portal (public map)
  10. Mining Zimbabwe — Procedures and requirements of acquiring mining title in Zimbabwe (updated 3 Jun 2026)
  11. Chamber of Mines of Zimbabwe — Mining law
  12. Mining Zimbabwe — Government sets July 2025 deadline for title holders to update coordinates (27 Jun 2025)
  13. Environmental Management Agency — ESIA process
  14. Mining Zimbabwe — Post mine registration guidelines (4 Sep 2020)
  15. NewZimbabwe — Zimbabwe cuts mining licensing fees, operationalises digital registry (6 May 2026)
  16. Mining Zimbabwe — Ministry of Mines chases US$31 million in outstanding title fees (Aug 2026)
  17. Mining Zimbabwe — Government gives mining title holders until 30 August 2026 to regularise outstanding obligations (Jul 2026)
  18. Rio Times — Zimbabwe small-scale miners’ regularisation deadline moved to 31 December 2026 (6 Sep 2026)
  19. Mining Zimbabwe — The agreement is signed, but the mine is not yours (8 Sep 2026)
  20. Mining Zimbabwe — Digital mining cadastre nears completion as Zimbabwe prepares to digitise 60,000 licences (1 Jul 2026)
  21. Financial Gazette — Government targets year-end for e-cadastre launch (21 Jun 2026)
  22. Veritas — Mines and Minerals Bill, 2025 (H.B. 1, 2025), gazetted 25 June 2025

Checked against the sources above on 17 September 2026.

More guides

Selling goldFidelity’s prices, who may buy, how you are paid and royaltiesFees and licencesWhat each title, inspection, permit and royalty costsBuying a claimThe document chain, in the order a buyer should check itHealth and safetyWhat kills miners, and what is being done about it