The South African Revenue Service has paid R33 billion in refunds to 3,143,675 taxpayers since 1 July, it said on 22 October.
The figure covers 1 July to 19 October 2026. SARS said 85% of those refunds were paid within 72 hours, reaching more than 3 million taxpayers.
By 30 September, SARS had auto-assessed more than 6.9 million returns, 20% more than the previous year, according to its media release. It also extended auto-assessment to some provisional taxpayers for the first time.
The 6.9 million count is the season total SARS has published so far. An auto-assessment fills in a taxpayer’s return from third-party data, such as employer and bank records, so the person only has to accept or correct it.
For the 2026 filing season SARS said it used more verified third-party data, widened auto-assessment and improved its eFiling platforms. Taxpayers can now also receive assessment notices and send documents through WhatsApp.
SARS Commissioner Dr Johnstone Makhubu said that “paying legitimate refunds efficiently is equally important” as collecting tax that is due. He called the speed of processing legitimate refunds a measure of effective tax administration.
The release came a day before the filing season closes. Non-provisional taxpayers with outstanding returns have until Friday 23 October 2026 to submit them on SARS eFiling or the MobiApp. SARS urged them not to wait for the last day, and said no branch visit is needed because the digital channels cover the process.
A return that is filed late can bring a monthly penalty of between R250 and R16,000 for as long as it stays outstanding, SARS said, with the amount set by taxable income. Our earlier report sets out what each penalty band costs.
SARS also said unpaid tax can carry penalties and interest. It asked taxpayers who cannot pay in full to contact it promptly about payment arrangements.
SARS described its strategy as making compliance easy and deliberate non-compliance difficult and costly. It said its modernisation programme is meant to improve both collection and refunds while protecting the integrity of the tax system. Makhubu added that the digital platforms let taxpayers meet their obligations without visiting a SARS branch.
Provisional taxpayers and trusts have longer. Their deadline is 22 January 2027, as the earlier report notes.
The release did not give the average refund, a split by income, or last year’s refund total, so we do not compare the R33 billion with a previous season.
The next date is Friday 23 October, when the filing period for non-provisional individuals closes.
