Tax Practitioners

What’s New

28 April 2026 – Latest Tax Practitioner Connect newsletter is now available

Welcome to this edition of our newsletter for tax practitioners. In this issue, we share key updates from SARS, including the milestone of exceeding R2 trillion in net revenue, enhancements to the tax practitioner registration and verification process, and important filing and submission windows for employers and third-party data providers. We also highlight recent guidance on trust deregistration and forthcoming administrative non-compliance penalties and wrap up with a few useful links to the VAT Chat podcast series.
22 April 2026 – Simplified Beneficial Owner Register for Partnerships

During the 2024 Filing Season, SARS issued a notice implementing a new requirement for taxpayers who are in a partnership to declare the details of his or her partners on the ITR12, in line with the beneficial-owner regulations. This declaration is required by the General Laws (Anti-Money Laundering and Combating Terrorism Financing) Amendment Act 22 of 2022.

However, this created a significant administrative challenge as each partner had to provide details about every other partner, excluding themselves, on the annual Income Tax Return (ITR12).

To simplify the process, SARS is launching a single eFiling form, the Beneficial Owner Register IT3(BO). A designated partnership representative must use this form annually to register, fill out, and submit all partners’ information for the partnership. As a result, individual partners will no longer need to enter all partner details on the ITR12. Once the partnership representative submits the Partnership IT3(BO), SARS will issue an IT3(BO) unique number after processing the IT3(BO) form. Partners can use only this IT3(BO) unique number to declare partnership details on the ITR12.

How Does It Work?
1. Nominate and submit: The partnership must nominate a representative to access the IT3(BO) form on eFiling and complete the details of all partners. Once all the information is captured, the form must be submitted to SARS.
2. SARS issues the IT3(BO) number: SARS will issue a “Beneficial Owner Register for Partnership Notice (IT3[BO])” to the appointed representative. This notice includes the IT3(BO) unique number for the partnership. The partnership IT3(BO) unique number must then be used to retrieve the previously submitted partnership details, so that updates can be made and submitted to SARS.
3. Partners receive notification: SARS will also issue a “Beneficial Owner Partner in a Partnership Notice” to the partners that includes the IT3(BO) unique number. The partner must use the IT3(BO) unique number when declaring partnership details in their annual Income Tax Return (ITR12).
REMEMBER: The IT3(BO) form must be submitted annually by the designated representative. Each partner can use just the unique IT3(BO) number to declare partner details on the ITR12.

For more detail, see the IT-AE-36-G07 – Guide to the Beneficial Owner Register for Partnership IT3BO Form – External Guide.
21 April 2026 – Tax Practitioner registration and verification process improved

SARS is modernising the Tax Practitioner registration process to improve governance and compliance.

What is changing?

- A three-step registration process remains in place: RCB initiates registration, applicant completes the RAV01, and finalises application on eFiling.
- SARS will apply risk-based verification after receiving the application and may request supporting documents where a risk is identified.
- Registration status on eFiling is simplified to: Active, Suspended or Deregistered for RCBs.

How does this benefit you?

- Improved visibility of registration status on eFiling.
- Improved accuracy of tax practitioner register.
- Stronger governance and compliance through risk-based verification.

Updated guides:

- - GEN-GEN-59-G01 – Criteria for the Registration of Tax Practitioners – External Guide
  - GEN-GEN-58-G01 – How RCBs can Manage Tax Practitioner Members on eFiling – External Guide
1 April 2026 – Tax Practitioner Connect Issue 70 (March 2026)

In this issue we bring you the key changes for the 2026/2027 PAYE Employer Reconciliation BRS, including new rules for long service awards, death compensation during employment, and an updated source code for travel reimbursements. Discover the latest upgrades to e@syFile™ Employer, with enhanced bulk payment functionality for ITA88s, and learn about the newly opened Global Minimum Tax registration now available on SARS eFiling.

27 March 2026 – See the communication sent via SARS WhatsApp to suppliers listed on the Central Suppliers Database (CSD).

3 October 2025 – Latest Tax Practitioner video

See our new video on When can SARS deregister a Tax Practitioner for non-compliance?

8 September 2025 – Beware of Unauthorised use of SARS Trademarks

SARS holds exclusive rights to its trademarks, including logos, names, and official insignia. These trademarks are important assets that symbolize trust, authority, and the integrity of SARS’s services. We encourage you to take a few minutes to view our latest educational video. Understanding the importance of intellectual property not only protects SARS but also helps preserve the integrity of our collective interactions.
27 March 2025 – New e@syFile™ Employer videos

See the latest videos produced by our Taxpayer Trader and Education Team to help you with using the new version of e@syFile.

26 March 2025 – The new e@syFile™ Employer version 8.0

The new e@syFile™ Employer version 8.0 is now available, bringing a faster, smarter, and more secure way for employers to submit their reconciliations.

Employers need to download and install Version 8.0 to ensure a seamless transition before submission period opens on 1st April 2025. For more information visit e@syFile™ or see our new short video.
23 December 2024 – Protect yourself, only use registered Tax Practitioners!

Be aware of unregistered individuals offering to help with your tax matters, watch our short tutorial video – Protect yourself, only use registered Tax Practitioners!

You can also use the online look-up feature to check if a Tax Practitioner is indeed registered.

11 October 2024 – Clarification on the criteria for the recognition of Controlling Bodies and the registration of tax practitioners

The Tax Administration Act stipulates that an individual must register with both a Recognised Controlling Body (RCB) and SARS as a Tax Practitioner if they wish to provide tax related services to taxpayers. An RCB is responsible for overseeing the registration and admission of Tax Practitioners. RCBs are also required to manage their tax practitioner members’ compliance to the registration requirements. To support RCBs and tax practitioners in fulfilling these responsibilities, SARS has reworked the ‘Criteria for the registration of Tax Practitioners and the recognition of controlling bodies’ as previously published and agreed to.

See the following guides for more information:
29 July 2024 – Submitting returns older than five years
SARS has recently received complaints from tax practitioners regarding difficulties in accessing their clients’ returns older than five years. To address this issue, tax practitioners are required to reconfirm their status on eFiling before attempting to request or submit such returns. Once their status has been successfully reconfirmed, tax practitioners may proceed with these requests or submissions.

Additionally, it has been noted that tax administrators linked to tax practitioners are currently unable to request or submit old returns, placing an undue burden on the tax practitioners. In response, SARS has implemented a change allowing tax administrators linked to tax practitioners to request or submit returns older than five years.
12 July 2024 – Check Tax Practitioner’s registration status
If in doubt, remember you can confirm here that your Tax Practitioner is registered.

About Us

SARS places great value on a healthy professional relationship with Tax Practitioners who are key in providing a service to our clients the taxpayers.

SARS is therefore committed to:

- Engaging with practitioners continuously and constructively
- Providing access and channels to practitioners
- Specific Service offerings to registered practitioners
- Providing specific communications for Practitioners

Here you will find the latest information and updates from SARS to assist you in serving your clients and in broadening the culture of tax compliance.

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Tax Education

See our education video on the importance of understanding intellectual property.
For the latest tutorial video and webinar on tax and trade topics, see our SARS TV Channel.