SARS Filing Season 2026: what to check on your tax return

Living in Australia with South African tax affairs? What to check on your 2026 ITR12, from residency records and auto-assessments to filing dates.

A financial calculator and pen on Daniel Nel's desk, with part of a keyboard above.

SARS has updated its individual income tax return, the ITR12, for Filing Season 2026. If you live in Australia and still have South African tax affairs, there are a few details worth checking before you submit your return or rely on an auto-assessment.

I would start with the residency information SARS has on file and the income shown on the return. Having information filled in for you is useful, but it still needs to reflect your circumstances.

Start with the residency information SARS holds

SARS’s 2026 update explains that the residency indicators on its records determine whether you see a resident or non-resident return. These include whether you have ceased South African tax residency and the dates on which you became or reinstated residency.

If SARS already classifies you as a non-resident, the cessation indicator and date on the ITR12 are filled in and locked. If those details are wrong, check the correction process with SARS or your tax practitioner. Changing an income figure will not fix the underlying residency record.

SARS uses the Registration, Amendments and Verification form, or RAV01, to record notifications of changes in tax residency. Its residency guidance explains the process and supporting documents.

Your tax position depends on the applicable residency rules and any relevant tax treaty. The information on the form needs to be checked against that position.

Check what an auto-assessment includes

An auto-assessment uses information supplied to SARS by employers, banks, medical schemes, retirement funds and other third parties. You can review the assessment and its supporting information on eFiling or the SARS MobiApp.

If it is complete and correct, you do not need to accept it separately or submit a return. Any tax payable still needs to be paid by its due date.

For someone earning in Australia, the point is to check what is actually reflected. Do not assume Australian income has been included or treated correctly. Whether it needs to be reported, and how it is taxed, depends on your circumstances.

If information supplied by an institution is wrong or incomplete, ask that institution to correct and resend it to SARS. Check that the correction appears before submitting your return. If you have other reportable income or deductions missing from the assessment, you need to complete and submit a return with that information.

SARS’s auto-assessment guidance explains those checks. You can correct and submit your return after receiving the assessment notice; the filing deadline depends on your taxpayer category.

A change to the investment fields

If you declare interest income, there is another change to check. Certain interest expenses, exemptions and amounts covered by a double taxation agreement must now be recorded against the relevant institution or account.

A double taxation agreement is a tax treaty between countries. This change concerns where particular amounts are entered on the return; it does not, by itself, decide whether you qualify for an exemption or how your Australian salary should be treated.

The 2026 changes notice explains the account-level reporting requirement. If it applies to you, have the statements for each account available when your return is prepared.

Keep the tax years and filing dates separate

The South African 2026 year of assessment ran from 1 March 2025 to 28 February 2026. Australia’s financial year runs from 1 July to 30 June. An annual total from an Australian income statement therefore covers a different period from the one needed for the South African return.

For the 2026 ITR12, the filing deadlines are:

  • 23 October 2026 for non-provisional individual taxpayers.
  • 22 January 2027 for provisional taxpayers filing through eFiling, including those who need to correct an auto-assessment.

If you are unsure which category applies, confirm it with your tax practitioner. These are return-filing deadlines; payment dates need to be checked separately.

There is an extra step if you ceased South African tax residency during the year. The ITR12 displays both resident and non-resident sections. Where a third-party certificate’s reporting period overlaps the cessation date, that information will not be filled in automatically. The amounts for each period need to be calculated and entered in the appropriate sections.

The ITR12 guide, section 4.3.2 explains this. It is the kind of work I would leave to someone who handles South African returns regularly.

Getting the right help

If your income or residency changed during the year, give your tax practitioner the dates and supporting records before they prepare the return. That gives them a clearer basis for checking what SARS has recorded and what still needs to be declared.

I do not lodge South African returns. Where SARS is involved, I work alongside tax specialists and lawyers and refer that work to them. If you need help finding the right person to review your position, feel free to reach out.

The information on this blog is general in nature and does not take into account your personal objectives, financial situation, or needs. Please consider whether the information is appropriate to your circumstances before acting on it.

For the broader background, see my overview of South African tax residency, retirement funds and moving money offshore.

Sources and further reading

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