SARS is pursuing a “go green” approach when engaging taxpayers. All correspondence will now be delivered electronically to your eFiling profile and other digital channels. Eliminating physical mail allows SARS to improve operational efficiency, reduce reliance on third-party vendors, deliver correspondence faster and more reliably, and become more environmentally sustainable. Taxpayers can access all communications from SARS through eFiling.

Tax Exempt Institutions are urged to register on eFiling, where they can:

• Update the Tax Exempt Institution’s registered details (including bank details and Registered Representative).
• Submit annual returns.
• Enquire about outstanding returns, debt, and payments.
• Obtain their Tax Compliance Status.
• Submit third-party data, such as the IT3(d) (tax deductible receipt information issued to donor taxpayers) and IT3(t) (beneficiary information).

Using SARS eFiling offers several benefits for taxpayers. Here are some of the key advantages:

• Convenience: eFiling allows you to submit your tax returns and other documents online.
• Accessibility: you can access eFiling from anywhere with an internet connection, making it easy to manage your tax affairs at any time.
• Efficiency: eFiling streamlines submitting tax returns and allows you to track the status of your submissions online.
• Accuracy: eFiling reduces the risk of errors by providing built-in checks and validations. This helps you submit tax returns that are accurate and complete.
• Security: eFiling is secure, protecting your personal and financial information. It uses encryption and other security measures to keep your data safe.
• Timely Updates: eFiling provides timely updates and notifications, keeping you informed about important deadlines and any changes to your tax status.

SARS has enhanced the eFiling Auto-Merge feature to help taxpayers, representatives, and tax practitioners merge various taxes (Income Tax, Employees’ Tax, Customs & Excise) into one profile per client/entity.

Auto-Merge (actioned by SARS) has been improved to cater for likely and possible matches. A possible or likely match refers to records that match one or two key identity-information fields, for example surname or name, or registered name for companies. The likely and possible matches will include companies, individuals, and Trusts (Testamentary and Inter vivos only).

Auto-Merge excludes records of large businesses, government institutions, municipalities, clubs, welfare organisations (as defined in the VAT Act), collective investment schemes, foreign entities with passport numbers, and estate cases.

SARS will notify taxpayers of proposed merges by digital communication, such as e-mail and eFiling. Taxpayers can object on eFiling, at a SARS office, or through SOQS, with the taxpayer providing detailed reasons for exclusion from the profile.