All qualified teams for the 2012 Africa Cup of Nations are required to submit their final 23-man squads before midnight on January 11, Caf has ordered.
Failure to beat the deadline for the squad submission will attract a fine of $3000 in conformity with regulations governing Caf tournaments.
The further delay in submitting the final squad seven days to the start of the competition will lead to a penalty costing three registration slots- meaning only 20 players instead of 23 will be registered.
A team can however replace seriously injured players 24 hours before the team in question plays its first group game but this provision is subject to approval by the CAF Medical Committee after receiving a detailed medical assessment of the injured party.