SARS has auto-assessed millions of South Africans this Filing Season, and for most people the instinct is to tap accept and move on. It is quick, the refund often lands within days, and it feels like one less thing to worry about. But a SARS auto-assessment is only ever as complete as the information SARS already holds, and that information has real gaps. Accept it without checking and you can quietly leave money on the table, or worse, leave income undeclared that SARS catches up with later.
At PATC we have been preparing tax returns for South Africans for over three decades, and every Filing Season we see the same avoidable outcomes. Here is what a SARS auto-assessment actually is, the checks worth doing before you accept, and what to do if you have already accepted.
What is a SARS auto-assessment?
A SARS auto-assessment is a pre-populated tax return that SARS generates on your behalf using data submitted directly to it by third parties. Your employer submits your IRP5. Your medical aid reports your contributions. Retirement funds report contributions made through your employer. Banks report interest, and from this year investment income is pre-populated too.
Where your tax affairs fit neatly inside that ecosystem, the assessment can be reasonably accurate. The problem is everything SARS cannot see: the retirement annuity you pay into directly, the home office you run, the logbook behind your travel allowance, and the rental or freelance income that never passes through a payroll. None of that appears automatically, and none of it is SARS’s job to chase. That responsibility is yours.
Should you accept your SARS auto-assessment?
Only after you have checked it. An assessment being issued is not the same as it being accurate. Before you accept, run through the five checks below. If everything matches and nothing is missing, accepting is perfectly fine. If something is missing, you will want to file a corrected return instead.
5 checks to make before you accept your auto-assessment
1. Your IRP5
Check that the salary, PAYE, and source codes on the assessment match your payslips and your own IRP5. A single mismatched code can change the outcome.
2. Medical aid contributions and out-of-pocket expenses
The assessment will usually reflect your scheme contributions, but it will not include qualifying out-of-pocket medical expenses you paid yourself. Prescriptions, treatments, and costs your scheme did not cover can add up, particularly where they exceed the 7.5% of taxable income threshold.
3. Retirement annuity contributions
This is the single most commonly missed deduction. Contributions to a workplace pension or provident fund usually appear on your IRP5, but contributions to a separate retirement annuity, direct top-ups, and amounts you paid outside your employer’s payroll often do not. If you changed jobs, switched providers, or contributed on your own during the year, check this carefully and make sure the contribution certificate is accounted for.
4. Travel allowance
Where you received a travel allowance (source code 3701), you can only claim against it with a proper logbook. No logbook, no claim, and the allowance simply gets taxed. If you kept one, make sure the claim is reflected.
5. Side income
Rental income, freelance work, consulting, and side hustles must be declared even though SARS has no automatic record of them. This is the flip side of the coin: miss a deduction and you overpay, but miss income and SARS eventually comes knocking, usually with penalties attached.
A note on the retirement annuity deduction limit
There has been some confusion doing the rounds online, so it is worth being precise. For the 2026 Filing Season, you are filing your return for the tax year that ran from 1 March 2025 to 28 February 2026. For that year, retirement fund contributions are deductible up to 27.5% of the greater of your remuneration or taxable income, capped at R350,000.
The higher R430,000 cap that you may have seen mentioned only takes effect from 1 March 2026, which is the 2027 tax year. It is excellent news for your planning going forward, but it does not apply to the return in front of you now.
Already accepted your auto-assessment? You can still fix it
Accepting a SARS auto-assessment is not the end of the road. Where you have since spotted a missing deduction, or income that should have been declared, you can submit a corrected ITR12 through SARS eFiling.
For non-provisional individual taxpayers, the window to file or correct your return runs until 23 October 2026. Provisional taxpayers have until 22 January 2027. Filing a correction sooner rather than later gives SARS time to process any additional refund and leaves room to respond if anything is flagged for verification.
Frequently asked questions
Do I have to accept my SARS auto-assessment?
No. If the auto-assessment is incomplete or incorrect, you can file a corrected ITR12 instead of accepting it. If it is complete and accurate, you can accept it as is.
What happens if I do nothing?
If you take no action, SARS generally treats the auto-assessment as final after the filing deadline. That is why it is important to review it rather than ignore it, in case deductions or income are missing.
Can I still claim deductions after being auto-assessed?
Yes. You can add missing deductions such as retirement annuity contributions, out-of-pocket medical expenses, home office costs, and travel claims by submitting a corrected return before the deadline.
When is the 2026 tax filing deadline?
Non-provisional individual taxpayers have until 23 October 2026. Provisional taxpayers have until 22 January 2027.
Is the retirement annuity cap R350,000 or R430,000?
For the 2026 Filing Season (2025/26 tax year) the cap is R350,000. The R430,000 cap applies from 1 March 2026 (the 2027 tax year) onward.
Let PATC review your auto-assessment before you accept
A tax return is one of those things that is easy to get slightly wrong and expensive to fix afterwards. Where you want a professional to review your auto-assessment against your actual situation, catch the deductions you are entitled to, and make sure nothing is left undeclared, that is exactly what we do.
PATC offers a complimentary one-hour discovery call to talk through your position, tell you honestly what the work involves, and quote fairly. T’s and C’s apply. You can also book your free consultation online in under a minute.
Call 031 702 8112 or email info@patc.co.za, and let us make sure your assessment is right before you accept it.
PATC – Professional Accountants and Tax Consultants. Your Partner in Financial Clarity. www.patc.co.za
