What’s New?
16 September 2024 – The Employer Interim reconciliation opens 16 September 2024 to 31 October 2024 for the 2025 Employer Filing Season
The following enhancements have been implemented for the interim PAYE Filing Season:
- A new source code has been added to the IRP5/IT3(a) certificate:
- Source code 3926 was added relating to the savings withdrawal benefit. Specifically, a withdrawal from a Retirement Fund’s Savings Component/Pot.
- Two source codes have been removed on the IRP5/IT3(a) certificate:
- Source code 2039 was removed (“Employer Contact Person Fax Number”)
- Source code 3137 was removed (“Employee Fax Number”)
- Enhancements have been made to the financial fields on the IRP5 certificate: A warning message will be displayed if all digits of a financial field are the same e.g. 4444.00
- Updates to the employer statement of account:
- The employer statement of account has been enhanced to display the status of payroll taxes.
- The statement will now include Employment Tax Incentive (ETI) account balance.
- Enhancements to the EMP501 Reconciliation process:
- Directive validation module has been enhanced to allow for validation of multiple source codes for one directive number.
- The employer will be prevented from requesting EMP501 reconciliation prior to the Interim Filing season start date, e.g. the employer requests an interim EMP501 reconciliation on 20 August 2024 before the start date, which is 16 September 2024. The request will be rejected.
- The employer will also be prevented from submitting the saved interim EMP501 reconciliation on eFiling if the final EMP501 reconciliation has been submitted already.
- Notification will be issued where an IT3(a) certificate with Income Tax reference number is submitted, and PAYE should have been deducted.
- Enhancements to employer deregistration process:
- Where amendments were made to the EMP501 reconciliation which is in the Excessive Liability Change (ELC) process, deregistration of payroll taxes will not automatically be re-instated.
- The coding date of de-registration will always be set to a date later than the processed date of the last return. This date will not be considered if the Revised Declaration is submitted
- Enhancements to ETI account: ETI refund and forfeit process has been enhanced.
The e@syFile™ Employer application has been upgraded and the new e@syFile offers improved performance and includes the following features:
- Easier navigation and data capture experience has been prioritised with a new look-and-feel and arrangement functions and workflows.
- Full installations with every software update.
- Quick links to related functionality has been introduced to remove the need to continuously navigate through multiple menu items
- Enhanced user maintenance functionality to add and remove users and restrict functionality
Employers can update the old e@syFile™ while still installing the new version, rather than uninstalling the old version. Both the old and new versions can operate on the same PC. For the bi-annual submission, either the old or the new version of e@syFile™ Employer can be used to submit the reconciliation. However, for the annual filing season, only submissions via the new version of e@syFile™ Employer will be accepted.
For more information, see the Frequently Asked Questions on the e@syFile webpage.
The following guides were updated:
- IT-easyFile-G01 – Third Party Appointment AA88 e@syFile™TC Employer Guide – External Guide
- PAYE-easyFileG01 – e@syfile™TC Employer Guide – External Guide
- EMP-GEN-02-G01 – A Guide to the Employer Reconciliation Process – External Guide
- PAYE-AE-06-G06 – Guide for Codes Applicable to Employees Tax Certificates 2025 – External Guide
- PAYE-AE-06-G07 – Guide for Validation Rules Applicable to Reconciliation Declarations 2025 – External Guide
- PAYE-AE-06-G08 – Guide for Completion and Submission of Employees Tax Certificates 2025 – External Guide
- PAYE-GEN-01-G19 – Guide for Employers iro Employees Tax for 2025 – External Guide
- GEN-VDP-02-G01 – Voluntary Disclosure Programme – External Guide
- A new source code has been added to the IRP5/IT3(a) certificate:
- 13 September 2024 – Employers’ Interim Reconciliation Is Part of Filing Season:
The Employer Interim Reconciliation submission period runs from 16 September to 31 October 2024. Employers, in both the private and public sectors, must reconcile their declarations for the first six months of the reconciliation year (1 March 2024 to 31 August 2024) and submit their Employer Reconciliation Declaration (EMP501) via eFiling or e@syFile™ Employer.
For employers to submit their reconciliation correctly, their declaration must include:
- Monthly Employer Declarations (EMP201) submitted with the tax values (PAYE, UIF, SDL) matching the interim IRP5/IT3(a) certificates generated;
- Payments made (excluding penalties and interest paid); and
- Accurate payroll information and tax certificates (IRP5/IT3[a]) generated for the period 1 March 2024 to 31 August 2024.
Reconciliation Made Easier
- Step 1: Employers, tax practitioners and payroll administrators, must download the latest e@syFile™ Employer version from sarsefiling.co.za.
- Step 2: Import the electronic Employee Tax Certificates (IRP5/IT3[a]) CSV files from their current payroll system.
- Step 3: Capture all additional IRP5/IT3(a)s manually. Note e@syFile™ Employer will use the information from all the tax certificates to calculate the certificate totals for the EMP501 automatically.
- Step 4: Enter their monthly liabilities, payments and Employment Tax Incentive (ETI) information (if applicable). Note e@syFile™ Employer will calculate the rest. e@syFile employers have the option to use prepopulated data or work offline without prepopulated data. Employers who declare ETI must use the “Accept SARS Data” option to ensure that ETI is prepopulated on the EMP501. ETI values may not be captured or increased on the EMP501.
- Step 5: Make sure that their details are correct and up to date.
- Step 6: Submit Reconciliation, view EMP501 Dashboard and view PAYE Dashboard to ensure reconciling processed successfully. For large reconciliation allow a couple of minutes for process.
Submission Channels
- Employers with 50 or less employees can use either SARS eFiling or e@syFile™ Employer. If the employer has 50 or less IRP5/IT3(a) certificates, a tax-certificate file can be generated from the payroll system and this file can be imported into SARS eFiling.
- Employers that file EMP501s for more than 50 employees must use e@syFile™ Employer.
- An exception is made for employers with a maximum of five IRP5/IT3(a) The employer can visit the nearest SARS branch, and an agent will help to capture these IRP5/IT3(a)s and the EMP501. Remember to book an appointment before visiting a SARS branch.
Note: SARS is in the process of moving to a new e@syFile platform. Therefore, for this submission period, both the e@syFile platforms will be available, and for the 02 submissions (2025 onwards) only the new e@syFile should be used.
For more information, go to the new Frequently Asked Questions on the e@syFile webpage.
Accuracy and Timely Filing Are Critical
- Employers must capture the correct PAYE liability on the monthly EMP201 returns. Incorrect calculation of the monthly PAYE liability could result in the imposition of both penalties and interest. This includes corrections made on the EMP501 reconciliation, because any shortfall is attributed to the last month of the reconciliation period.
- Employers must submit an accurate EMP501 using the e@syFile™ Employer or SARS eFiling by 31 October 2024 to avoid penalties.
Consequences of Non-compliance
If an employer submits the EMP501 late, SARS will charge administrative penalties. The penalty will equal 1% of the year’s PAYE liability, which will increase each month by 1% up to a maximum of 10% of the year’s PAYE liability. Furthermore, an employer who wilfully or negligently fails to submit an EMP201 or EMP501 return to SARS is guilty of an offence. As a result, they are liable, upon conviction, for a fine or imprisonment for up to two years.
What Constitutes a Criminal Offence?
An employer will be guilty of an offence and subjected to a fine or imprisonment for up to two years if the employer:
- Fails to deduct employees’ tax from remuneration or pay tax to SARS within the prescribed period;
- Does not deliver IRP5s or IT3(a)s to employees or former employees within the prescribed periods; and/or
- Uses employees’ deducted tax or withholds it for purposes other than to pay the amount to SARS.
Status of Submission
Employers must always check the status of submissions to ensure that their EMP501 was correctly filed with SARS.
More Information
For additional information about completing manual certificates, employers can keep an eye on this webpage for the updated e@syFile™ Employer User Guide or access the Step-by-Step Guide to the Employer Reconciliation Process. The updated guides will be available on 16 September 2024.
Business Requirement Specifications (BRS) and timelines
Business Requirement Specification | Year Applicable | Submission dates* |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 Annual Employer Reconciliation (1 March 2024 – 28 February 2025) | Interim: 16 Sep – 31 Oct 2024 | |
| 2024 Annual Employer Reconciliation (1 March 2023 – 29 February 2024) | Interim: 18 Sep – 31 Oct 2023 | |
| BRS – PAYE Employer Reconciliation for 2022 / 2023 | 2023 Annual Employer Reconciliation (1 March 2022 – 28 February 2023) | Interim: 19 Sep – 31 Oct 2022 |
| BRS – PAYE Employer Reconciliation for 2021 / 2022 | 2022 Annual Employer Reconciliation (1 March 2021 – 28 February 2022) | Interim: 13 Sep – 31 Oct 2021 |
| BRS – PAYE Employer Reconciliation for 2020 /2021 | 2021 Annual Employer Reconciliation (1 March 2020 – 28 February 2021) | Interim: 14 Sep – 31 Oct 2020 Annual: 1 Apr – 31 May 2021 |
| BRS – PAYE Employer Reconciliation for 2019 / 2020 | 2020 Annual Employer Reconciliation (1 March 2019 – 28 February 2020) | Interim: 23 Sep – 31 Oct 2019 Annual: 15 Apr – 31 May 2020 |
| BRS – PAYE Employer Reconciliation for 2018 / 2019 | 2019 Annual Employer Reconciliation (1 March 2018 – 28 February 2019) | Interim: 17 Sep – 31 Oct 2018 Annual: 1 Apr – 31 May 2019 |
| BRS – PAYE Employer Reconciliation for 2017 / 2018 | 2018 Annual Employer Reconciliation (1 March 2017 – 28 February 2018) | Interim: 15 Sep – 31 Oct 2017 Annual: 1 Apr – 31 May 2018 |
| BRS – PAYE Employer Reconciliation for 2016 /2017 | 2017 Annual Employer Reconciliation (1 March 2016 – 28 February 2017) | Interim: 12 Sep – 31 Oct 2016 Annual: 1 Apr – 31 May 2017 |
* The final submission periods are subject to business requirements / readiness and calendar working day dates. Final confirmation will be communicated at the time of the relevant submission period.
What is PAYE?
An employer who is registered or required to register with SARS for PAYE and/or Skills Development Levy (SDL) purposes, is also required to register with SARS for the payment of Unemployment Insurance Fund (UIF) contributions to SARS. You can register once for all different tax types using the client information system.
Top Tip: The Employment Tax Incentive encourages employers to employ young workers by providing a tax incentive to the employers. Read more.
Who is it for?
How and when should it be paid?
- eFiling
- Electronic payments (EFT)
- Payments at a bank: All payments can be made at any ABSA, Capitec, FNB, Nedbank or Standard Bank branch.
- Manual forms of payments will no longer be accepted by SARS. Cheques posted / delivered to SARS will be returned to the client.
The responsibility of the employer in respect of a deceased employee
What obligation rests on the employer?
Paragraph 13(2)(b) of the Fourth Schedule to the Income Tax Act provides that an employer, who ceased to be an employer in relation to an employee, for example when an employee dies, is required to deliver an employees’ tax certificate within 14 days of the date on which employment ceased to the former employee (or to such deceased employee’s representative).
The employer must therefore deliver an employees’ tax certificate within 14 days after the employee passed away. The employer is required to provide the employees’ tax certificate to the executor acting as the representative taxpayer of the deceased employee.
The provisions of paragraph 14(5) of the Fourth Schedule that states the employees’ tax certificate shall not be delivered until the EMP501 reconciliation was submitted to SARS is not applicable to the circumstances envisaged under paragraph 13(2)(b). An employer must therefore, in the case of an employee’s death, provide the employees’ tax certificate even if the reconciliation is not yet submitted.
What obligation rests on the executor?
The executor, as the representative taxpayer, is responsible to finalise the financial and tax affairs of the deceased employee efficiently and without any unnecessary delays. The executor should therefore ensure that the necessary documentation, like the employees’ tax certificate is obtained from the deceased’s employer.
Note: The provisions of paragraph 13(2)(b) also apply in the case of an employee who retired or resigned. The employer must ensure that the employees’ tax certificate is provided to the employee within 14 days after resignation or retirement. If the employer fails to provide the employees’ tax certificates, the employee must request it from the employer.
