12 (a) the Council is satisfied that the applicant possesses the qualifications for registration and is a fit and proper person to be registered; and (b) the applicant’s registration has not previously been cancelled or suspended in terms of this Act; the Council shall grant the application and direct the Registrar to register the applicant as a social worker. (2) In determining, for the purposes of subsection (1), whether an applicant is a fit and proper person to be registered, the Council may take into account— (a) his physical or mental health; and (b) his character and reputation; and (c) any conduct of his which, if he had been registered, would have constituted improper or disgraceful conduct: Provided that, before refusing registration in terms of this paragraph, the Council shall hold an inquiry in terms of Part V and that Part shall apply, mutatis mutandis, as if the applicant were registered. (3) If the Council decides that, prima facie, it should reject an application for registration, the Council shall direct the Registrar to send the applicant a registered letter notifying him of its decision and the reasons for it and advising him that within thirty days he may lodge a written objection with the Council against its decision. (4) If an applicant— (a) fails to lodge an objection with the Council within the period stipulated in subsection (3); or (b) having lodged an objection, withdraws or abandons it; the Council shall reject his application and direct the Registrar to notify him accordingly and to advise him of his rights under section thirty-six. (5) If an applicant lodges an objection within the period stipulated in subsection (3), the Council shall give him an opportunity, by himself or represented by a legal practitioner, to show cause why he should be registered, and if, after giving him that opportunity, the Council decides to reject his application, the Council shall forthwith⎯ (a) notify the applicant or his legal representative, if any, of its decision and the reasons for it; and (b) advise the applicant or his legal representative, if any, of the applicant’s rights under section thirty-six. (6) When granting an application under subsection (1), the Council may fix conditions or limitations subject to which the applicant is to practise the profession of social work, but if the Council does so subsections (3), (4) and (5) shall apply, mutatis mutandis, in regard to the application. 26 Certificate of registration (1) Whenever the Registrar registers a person in terms of this Part, he shall issue him with a certificate of registration in the form prescribed.