SARS is issuing auto-assessments from 1 to 12 July. If you receive one, take a breath: it's a proposal based on the data SARS already holds, not a final verdict, and clicking accept without reviewing it transfers all legal responsibility for any mistake straight to you.
An auto-assessment draws on third-party data submitted before the season opens: your IRP5 or IT3(a) from your employer, IT3(b) and IT3(c) certificates for interest and capital gains, medical aid contribution data, and retirement fund contributions. If that's genuinely your entire financial picture, the assessment will likely be accurate. Most people's situations have at least one gap.
SARS only knows what third parties report, so it can't see deductions you haven't declared yourself. Travel allowances need a logbook to substantiate any claim, and SARS can't calculate that for you. Home office expenses, if you meet the strict criteria, need to be claimed manually. Out-of-pocket medical costs beyond your scheme's contribution data are also invisible to the system, and so is capital gains tax on any asset you've sold. Freelance income, rental income, or any side earnings need to be added by you.
Accept the assessment as-is, and every one of these opportunities disappears along with any refund attached to them.
South African tax law places the burden of proof on the taxpayer, not on SARS. Clicking accept is a legal declaration that the information is complete and correct. If a later audit uncovers undeclared income, even income the auto-assessment itself missed, "SARS made the mistake" isn't a valid defence. Understatement penalties can run from 10% to 200% of the shortfall depending on severity.
Log in and review the detailed breakdown line by line. Cross-reference it against your own IRP5, medical aid certificate, RA certificate and bank statements. Identify anything missing, then edit the return before accepting, rather than accepting and trying to correct it afterward.
Log in and review the full breakdown. Don't act on the SMS or email notification alone.
Cross-check against your own documents. IRP5, medical aid, RA and bank statements, side by side with what SARS has assumed.
Identify missing deductions or income. Logbooks, home office costs, side income, and any capital gains not yet declared.
Edit before accepting. Correct the return directly rather than accepting first and requesting a correction later.
You can still file a Request for Correction via eFiling, ideally within 21 business days of the original assessment.
It can trigger a request for supporting documents, which is a normal part of the process. Keep your logbooks and certificates ready and there's nothing to worry about.
Yes. The legal responsibility to declare all income sits with you regardless of what SARS's system happened to capture.
An auto-assessment is a starting point, not the final word. Review it properly between 1 and 12 July, correct what's missing, and protect both your refund and your compliance record. For related tax guidance, see our blog, and current SARS information.
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