Hoping you’re keeping warm in this cold weather.
Tax issues
Fuel levy increases
Just reminder that on the 3rd of June the fuel levy increases from 110c/litre to 260c/litre on petrol and from nil to 197c/litre on diesel. Then, on the 1st of July, there is another increase from 260c/litre to 410c/litre on petrol and an increase from 197c/litre to 393c/litre on diesel.
AA88 issues
Anecdotally, the flurry of AA88’s has stopped, or at least gotten back to the usual pace. SARS has however, through this process, realised that there were a number of issues with the process. The Guide on the ITA88 process has therefore been updated. Key changes include:
- Application synchronisation – Enhanced guidance and troubleshooting steps have been included to help employers resolve synchronisation issues and identify the most recent AA88 records after synchronisation.
- Employee filtering – Additional explanations have been provided to help employers filter employee records more effectively.
- Bulk payments – The guide has been updated to reflect the corrected bulk payment process and includes clearer instructions to support successful processing.
- Status outcome updates for ITA88 – The guide now clearly explains the system limitation related to ITA88 notices and provides guidance on the manual process required where automated status updates are not supported.
Filing season for 2026
The official GG is out! https://www.sars.gov.za/wp-content/uploads/Legal/Legal-LSec-TAdm-PN-2026-03-Notice-7422-GG-54598-Notice-to-submit-returns-for-the-2026-year-of-assessment-30-April-2026.pdf
The standard 12 months for companies, PBOs and recreational clubs is still in force. For everyone else:
- on or before 23 October 2026;
- on or before 22 January 2027 if the return relates to a provisional taxpayer
- on or before 22 January 2027 if the return relates to a trust; or
- where accounts are accepted by the Commissioner in terms of section 66(13A) of the Income Tax Act in respect of the whole or portion of a taxpayer’s income, which are drawn to a date after 28 February 2026 but on or before 30 September 2026, within 6 months from the date to which such accounts are drawn.
Please also remember that exemption from submitting returns is now only available to individuals in select circumstances. Check here for more details: https://www.sars.gov.za/types-of-tax/personal-income-tax/do-you-need-to-submit-a-return/
