The South African Revenue Service has announced the filing deadline for non-provisional individual taxpayers is Friday, 23 October 2026. Provisional individual taxpayers must file by Friday, 22 January 2027. Trusts share the same deadline as provisional taxpayers.
Key facts:
- Companies must submit their income tax returns within 12 months from the end of their financial year.
- SARS has not yet announced the start date for the 2026 tax filing season.
- Individual taxpayers selected for automatic assessment do not have to submit a return unless they reject the auto-assessment.
- A natural person is not required to submit a return if their gross income consists solely of certain exempt amounts.
- Estates of deceased persons that received gross income must submit a return.
- All trusts resident in South Africa during the 2026 year of assessment must submit a tax return.
- A resident company must submit a tax return if it had gross income of more than R1,000 during the 2026 year of assessment.
- The 2026 year of assessment covers the period from 1 March 2025 to 28 February 2026.
Individuals may find themselves exempt from filing under certain conditions. For instance, an individual is exempt if their gross income is below R95,750 if under age 65. The threshold increases to R148,217 for individuals aged between 65 and 74 and R165,689 for those aged 75 and older. Additionally, those earning less than R38,800 in interest income (under age 65) or R34,500 (age 65 and older) may also be exempt.
Officials have not confirmed when the filing period will officially open. The Notice No. 7422 was published in Government Gazette No. 54598 on April 30, 2026, detailing these requirements. Taxpayers should prepare for these deadlines to ensure compliance with SARS regulations.
