28 July 2025 – To make it easier for South African taxpayers who are not South African tax residents but who have South African source-based income, SARS made enhancements to the 2025 ITR12 tax return. These enhancements aim to ensure that non-residents complete the correct required fields in the return. An interim solution to activate this part of the tax return has been introduced via the SARS Online Query System (SOQS). This allows non-resident taxpayers to request the non-resident section of the tax return. A more permanent solution directly on the tax return through the tax return “wizard” will be introduced later.
To use SOQS to enable the non-resident section of the tax return:
- On the SARS website homepage, click on the SOQS icon, and navigate to the “Non-Resident Tax Return Type”.
- Complete the personal details as prompted.
- Once SARS has validated the information, a One-Time Pin (OTP) will be sent to the contact details on record.
- Choose the 2025 tax year and answer yes or no to the questions that will follow.
- Depending on your answers your tax return will now be in the correct format and can be retrieved through eFiling in the normal way.
The taxpayer’s information will be stored and used in the subsequent year of assessment unless the taxpayer’s circumstances have changed subsequently.
See the updated SARS Online Query System Guide for more detail.
