What’s New at SARS

22 April 2026 – The facility codes used in Box 30 on the Goods Declaration have been updated to include the Laser Transport Group (Pty) Ltd and Grindrod Logistics depots located in Durban, as well as the Avio Clearing and Forwarding (Pty) Ltd degrouping facility located at OR Tambo International Airport (ORTIA).

SC-CF-19-A02 – Facilities Code List – External Annexure

22 April 2026 – Customs and Excise Act, 1964: The tariff amendments notice, scheduled for publication in the Government Gazette, relates to the amendments to –

• Part 1 of Schedule No. 2, by the insertion of various items under item 216.01, in order to impose anti-dumping duties on fully automatic top load machines, of a dry linen capacity exceeding 10 kg but less than 17 kg, classifiable under tariff subheading 8450.20.20 originating in or imported from the People’s Republic of China and the Kingdom of Thailand (ITAC Report 772).

Publication details will be made available later

22 April 2026 – Income Tax Act, 1962

• Absa Bank Ltd and Another v CSARS (CCT 72/24) [2026] ZACC 15 (22 April 2026)

Income Tax Act 58 of 1962 — statutory interpretation — sections 80A to L — impermissible avoidance arrangement — Tax benefit — party to an arrangement — knowledge of arrangement — appeal dismissed with costs

22 April 2026 – 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.

22 April 2026 – SARS will host a webinar aimed at supporting employers with their Employer Reconciliation (EMP501) submission and related processes for the 2026 Employer Filing Season.

The webinar seeks to educate employers on recent updates to the employer reconciliation process and provides guidance on the accurate submission of EMP501 returns using the e@syFile Employer software. This initiative supports SARS’s commitment to providing clarity and certainty for taxpayers and making it easier for them to meet their tax obligations.

Topics to be covered include:

• Overview of the e@syFile Employer system and its core functions
• Installation and setup processes
• Data management and certificate retrieval
• Reconciliation submission and resubmission procedures
• Troubleshooting and Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Webinar Details
Date: Thursday, 23 April 2026
Time: 17:00–19:00
Platforms: Zoom & YouTube

Register in advance using the link below:
https://sars-gov-za.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_jk_aEYlPTlCYsmrvUGQT8Q
Meeting ID: 939 2263 4148
Passcode: 212293

After registering, participants will receive a confirmation email with details on how to access the webinar and submit questions during the session. The webinar will also be recorded and made available on the SARS TV YouTube channel.

21 April 2026 – High Court Judgments

• X and Another v CSARS (A117/2025) [2026] ZAWCHC (16 April 2026)
• Trakman NO v CSARS (58927/21) [2026] ZAGPPHC (25 March 2026)
• Multipurpose Distributors v CSARS and Others (000317/2023) [2026] ZAGPPHC 90 (6 February 2026)

Summaries are available on the High Court Judgments page

21 April 2026 – The South African Revenue Service (SARS) in line with its strategic objectives of providing clarity and certainty and making it easy and simple for taxpayers to transact with the organization is assisting all employers and other third-party data providers to improve their data declarations. The submission period for these entities has already kicked off from 1 April 2026 to 31 May 2026.

Traditionally, the spotlight has been filing season for individuals, however the underlying process that determines if the filing experience for individual taxpayers is smooth or cumbersome, whether it be due to accurate auto-assessments, less queries, or fewer disputes, is the submission period for employers and other third-part data providers. This period runs annually from 01 April to 31 May and requires employers and other mandated third-data providers to submit remuneration and financial data related to individual taxpayers for the preceding tax year (01 March 2025 – 28 February 2026).

Third-party data providers that are required to submit third-party data include all employers, financial institutions, SARS-approved section 18A approved entities, co-operatives, mmedical aid schemes and Trusts, amongst others. A detailed list of third-party data providers who are mandated to submit is available at Third Party Data submission at a glance | South African Revenue Service.

SARS relies on the data from employers and other third-party data providers to pre-populate and auto-assess the personal tax returns of individual taxpayers which allows the taxpayer to confirm the details on their tax return before submitting. Pre-population of third-party data is the first step to SARS auto-assessing roughly 6 million taxpayers on an annual basis.

The non-submission or submission of inaccurate third-party data negatively impacted taxpayers, in that they were excluded from the auto-assessment process.  When third-party data is submitted accurately and timeously, taxpayers can be auto-assessed, providing them with an easier filing experience. It is therefore critical that employers and third-party data providers submit the latest, accurate information on time.

SARS has noted that some employers and third-party data providers appear not to be fully aware of their reporting obligations and have not adapted to comply with the evolving regulatory requirements. Some employers and third-party data providers wait till too close to the deadline to submit the necessary information, which sometimes makes it difficult to resolve discrepancies in the data provided.

During the 2025 tax filing season for individuals, incomplete data accounted for the following verifications:

1. 27 436 verifications were created due to missing or unmatched Retirement contribution
2. 81 588 verifications created due to missing or unmatched employer IRP5 data
3. 16 819 verifications created due to missing or unmatched medical data

For the 2026 season, SARS is aiming for behaviour change by ensuring employers and third-party data providers are ‘pre-filing ready’ and submit earlier than in previous years. Technical support sessions will be held where SARS subject matter experts will assist with submissions.

SARS urges third-party data providers to use SARS-approved channels, namely:

• eFiling, noting that this channel accommodates a limited volume of 25 certificates. It accommodates fifty certificates for IT3(d) and IT3(t)
• Connect Direct® accommodates an unlimited volume of data submissions
• Secured File Gateway (HTTPS) accommodates files smaller than 10 MB
• e@syfile™: Employers, tax practitioners, and payroll administrators may download a new and enhanced version of e@syfile™ Employer from the eFiling website at  www.sarsefiling.co.za before submitting their declarations.

Third-party data providers must register for eFiling to activate these channels if not already registered.

Further guidance may be obtained in the business requirement specifications (BRS) and user guides on the SARS website at IT3 Data Submission | South African Revenue Service.  Employers may refer to Annual Employer Declaration process.

For further information, please contact [email protected]

21 April 2026 – 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

20 April 2026 – A new Excise legislation, related to diesel refund claims under rebate item 670.04 of Schedule 6 to the Customs and Excise Act, Act No. 91 of 1964, came into effect on 01 April 2026. This legislation increases the allowable diesel consumption percentage for diesel refund claims for on-land primary sector beneficiaries from 80% to 100%. As a result, the eligible litres calculation has been updated in the system and on the policy document.

• SE-DSL-02 – Manage Diesel Refund Calculation – External Policy

20 April 2026 – Customs and Excise Act, 1964

• Glencore Operations SA (Pty) Ltd and Others v Commissioner for South African Inland Revenue and Another (406/2024) [2026] ZASCA 47 (9 April 2026)

Revenue – Customs and Excise Act 91 of 1964 (the Act) – diesel fuel concession – entitlement to a refund of diesel fuel levy used for primary production in mining – interpretation and ambit of Note 6(f)(ii)(cc) of rebate item 670.04 in Part 3 of Schedule 6 to the Act – claim by entity engaged in mining activities for diesel rebates – claim disallowed by Commissioner on grounds that the taxpayer was not ‘a person in possession of the necessary authorisation’ within ambit of Note 6(f)(ii)(cc) – decision of the high court confirming the Commissioner’s determination and holding that taxpayer not entitled to a refund of diesel fuel levy for the relevant period reversed on appeal.

20 April 2026 – SARS is undertaking an initiative to verify, maintain, and enhance the accuracy of taxpayers’ contact details in order to ensure compliance. To support this process, SARS will send SMS messages and emails requesting taxpayers to log into eFiling to update or confirm their contact details.

Maintaining accurate and up-to-date contact information enables you to receive important communication and updates from SARS promptly.

The message will read as follows:

Dear Taxpayer [Personal details]

SARS is updating taxpayers’ contact details to ensure accuracy. Please update your information on the eFiling platform to stay compliant.

Follow the following steps to complete the process:

1. Log into eFiling.
2. Select ‘My Profile’ from the left menu.
3. Proceed to the ‘Profile and Preference Setup’ tab.
4. Update or confirm your contact details for SARS’s records.
   

Sincerely

Issued on behalf of the Commissioner for the South African Revenue Service

20 April 2026 – Value Added Tax Act, 1991

• SARSTC VAT 32666 (VAT) [2026] ZATC JHB (18 March 2026)

VAT on service fee: Whether VAT on service fees, which the Taxpayer debited against the accounts of its clients in terms of a banker/client agreement, could be deducted as an input tax in subsequent VAT returns after the service fees were subsequently credited to the accounts of the clients.

17 April 2026 – Multilateral Instrument

Multilateral Instrument (MLI) synthesised texts:

• Denmark
• Kenya
• Indonesia
• Israel
• Malta
• Portugal

17 April 2026 – The Tax Directives System has been enhanced, and the guides have been updated in line with the legislative changes.

Recognition of Transfer (ROT)

The process to cancel ROTs submitted to SARS has been enhanced to reduce delays in finalising cancellation requests.

• Supporting documents will not be required when the Fund Administrators/Long-term insurer submits a request on eFiling.

• Review cases for manual intervention will no longer be created as the ROT cancellation will be automatically cancelled.

• The functionality for Bulk cancellation of ROTs has been added on eFiling to allow the requestor to submit multiple cancellation requests at the same time.
• The Fund Administrators/Long-term insurer will be able to view the status of a cancellation request and verify if a ROT has been cancelled.

To assist Fund Administrators/Long-term insurer to manage the administrative process around reminders for outstanding ROTs:

• In addition to the ability able to view existing ROTs that have been submitted on the relevant eFiling profile, Fund Administrators/Long-term insurer will now be able to enquire and view the details of the ROT reminders sent by SARS as a prompt to submit outstanding ROTs.

Double Tax Agreement (DTA) on Form C tax directive application

From 17 April 2026, the Fund Administrator will be able to indicate on the tax directive application form that a DTA is applicable, and a manual review case will be created for the Auditor/Assessor to verify the applicability of the DTA.

Due to system constraints, Fund Administrators were previously required to e-mail a manual tax directive application to SARS for a tax directive to be issued in line with the provisions of the applicable DTA. From 17 April 2027, these manual tax directive applications will not be accepted.

Certificate of Residence

Guidance has been provided to assist in determining which documents may be accepted as an alternative to a Certificate of Residence.

Backdated (Antedated) salaries and/or Pensions

When the reason on the tax directive is ‘Backdated (Antedated) salaries and/or Pensions’, the employer is required to provide a breakdown of the payment into the following categories:

• Income,
• Benefit,
• Deductions

Request for Relief of South African Tax (RST01)

Currently when the RST01 – ‘Directive Application by Non-Resident for Relief of SA Tax for Pension and Annuities’ is finalised, the tax directive (IRP3er) issued does not reflect the valid from/to dates per SARS intention to issue this directive with a 3-year validity period. The IRP3er has been enhanced to display the 3-year validity period.

Pronouncement from 2026 Budget Speech

The tax directive system will be updated for the following changes:

• The Paragraph (c) Living annuity commutation value, prescribed by Notice 7289 in the Government Gazette 54399 of 23 March 2026 is increased from R125 000 to R150 000 with effect from 1 March 2026, irrespective of whether there were any previous commutations on retirement.

• The value of the of the amount (De minimis) that a taxpayer can take in full, on retirement, without being subject to the annuitisation rules has been increased from an amount equal or less than R247 500 to an amount equal or less than R360 000 from 1 March 2026.

Updated guides:

• IT-AE-33-G01 – Tax directive Cease to be resident and Expiry of visas – External Guide
• IT-AE-41-G01 – Completion Guide for IRP3(a) and IRP3(s) Form – External Guide
• IT-AE-41-G02 – Guide to Complete the Lump sum Tax Directive Application Forms – External Guide
• IT-AE-41-G03 – Guide to Complete Submit and Cancel a Recognition of Transfer – External Guide
• IT-AE-41-G04 – Guide to the Tax Directive functionality on eFiling – External Guide

17 April 2026 – Customs and Excise Act, 1964

• Draft amendments to rules under section 120 – Surety bonds

Due date for comment: 8 May 2026

17 April 2026 – Customs and Excise Act, 1964: Publication details for tariff amendments notice R7373, as published in Government Gazette 54519 of 17 April 2026, are now available.

16 April 2026 – The Eastern Cape mobile tax unit schedules for May and June 2026 are now available.

16 April 2026 – Customs and Excise Act, 1964: The tariff amendments notices, scheduled for publication in the Government Gazette, relate to the amendments to –

• Part 1 of Schedule No. 1, by the insertion of tariff subheading 7310.10.20, in order to increase the general rate of customs duty on conical steel drums, of steel, of a capacity of 210 li or more but not exceeding 234 li from free of duty to 15% (ITAC Report 735).

Publication details will be made available later

16 April 2026 – Achieving our Vision of a smart, modern SARS with unquestionable integrity that is trusted and admired is of paramount importance. Pivotal to the delivery of our vision are our digital platforms and technology infrastructure. To provide clarity and certainty, make it easy for taxpayers and traders to comply with their obligations and building public trust and confidence, our technology assets must demonstrate the highest levels of availability, robustness and security.

In accordance with our Vision and Strategic Objectives, which include modernising our systems to provide Digital and Streamlined online services, we are hard at work ensuring that our digital platforms and technology infrastructure are available, robust and secure, by performing regular upgrades, enhancements and maintenance.

Considering the above, SARS Digital platform maintenance is scheduled for:

Friday, 17 April 2026 from 18h00 to 23h30.

During this time, you may experience intermittent service interruption on our eFiling, Tax and Customs Digital Platforms.