Individual taxpayers are reminded to submit a manual return if not already auto-assessed. The deadlines for individual submissions are:
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For non-provisional taxpayers who were not auto-assessed, the deadline is 20 October 2025.
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For provisional taxpayers, the deadline is 19 January 2026.
Here are a few words on e-Filing, e@syFile, certificate submissions and auto-assessments in general.
e-Filing, e@syFile, certificate submissions:
SARS’ 2025 annual filing season was marked by ongoing technical challenges with e@syFile, leaving many employers frustrated during the critical EMP501 submission window. Updates released between May 2025 and August 2025 required multiple reinstalls, with the May 19th build rollout in particular causing widespread glitches. Employers reported submissions hanging at 0%, “Server Error” employee lookups, and duplicate reconciliation issues. While SARS eventually released a patched build on 28 July 2025 (v8.0.0_265) to address major bugs, disruptions, and intermittent outages meant that many businesses struggled to meet the 31 May 2025 deadline without reverting to the old e@syFile version, which SARS temporarily re-enabled.
Despite these hurdles, practical workarounds and timely communication helped employers navigate the turbulence. The payroll community shared troubleshooting tips such as refreshing internet connections, splitting large submissions into smaller batches, and double-checking eFiling profile activations. SARS, for its part, issued validation guidance, patched critical errors, and communicated scheduled maintenance windows to allow employers to plan submissions more strategically. Ultimately, persistence, careful planning, and reliance on the updated builds, combined with SARS support interventions, allowed employers to complete their reconciliations and remain compliant despite a rocky filing season.
Auto-Assessments:
SARS has increasingly relied on auto-assessments to streamline the tax filing process, using third-party data from employers, banks, medical schemes, and retirement funds to pre-populate tax returns. During July 2025, auto-assessment notifications started rolling out between 7 and 20 July 2025, with taxpayers expected to review and confirm their prepopulated returns.
If the assessment was correct, no further action was required, and a refund of R 100.00 or more due would have been processed automatically within 72 hours, provided banking details were up to date. The auto-assessment system aims to simplify compliance and reduce filing pressure for millions of taxpayers, but it still demands vigilance from individuals.
Taxpayers must carefully check their auto-assessments, as SARS only processes what has been reported by third parties. Any additional income, such as freelance work, rental income, or capital gains, must be manually declared. If you disagree with the auto-assessment, you must file a corrected return by 20 October 2025 to avoid penalties.
The convenience of auto-assessments comes with responsibility: failing to verify and update your return can result in under-declaration, penalties, or audits. In short, SARS’ system is faster and more efficient, but taxpayers remain legally accountable for the accuracy of their tax submissions.