2023’s tax season starts on 7 July and closes on 23 October. Here’s a list of key things you need to know:

Updates on auto-assessments

• SARS increased the number of taxpayers receiving auto-assessments this year. If you’ve been selected for an auto-assessment you’ll be notified via SMS between 1 and 7 July 2023.
• Should you agree with the auto-assessment, nothing further will have to be done.
• Should you disagree with the outcome of the auto-assessment, you’ll have until 23 October 2023 to amend and file your return on efiling.
• SARS has aligned the submission deadline for amended auto-assessments with the deadline for taxpayers who haven’t been auto-assessed. (2022’s auto-assessed taxpayers only had 40 business days to amend their returns.)
• Taxpayers who have been auto-assessed will have 30 days after the notice of assessment to make payment to SARS, should any amount be owed.
• For taxpayers who haven’t been auto-assessed, the payment deadline will be 30 days from the close of the 2023 filing season.

Ready, set, file!

Before filing, you must confirm your personal details, get your IRP5/IT3(a) certificates and any other documents that verify your income and expenses.

What documents do I need?

If you’re an employee who receives a monthly salary, you should get the following documents together (where applicable):

• IRP5 employee tax certificate
• SARS logbook (if you receive a travel/car allowance)
• Medical tax certificate and evidence of all other medical expenses incurred
• Retirement annuity (RA) contribution certificate
• Tax certificates indicating interest income and dividend income received
• All information (income and expenses) relating to any side hustle
• If you are married in community of property, the certificates received by both you and your spouse are required

If more than 50% of your salary is made up of commission income or if you don’t earn a normal salary, you can claim tax deductions for any expenses incurred in the production of your income. These expenses should not be capital in nature – that is, you could claim for the interest on a bond repayment, but not for the purchase of the property. Documents required by SARS would be tax invoices and proof of payment related to those invoices.

No matter how you earn your income, the documents you used to file your return must be kept for 5 years from the date of your return submission.

A happy ending to filing season

We all have our favourite seasons, and there isn’t much that can be done when we’re trapped in our least favourite season. Fortunately, SARS’ filing season doesn’t need to be that unbearable. By ensuring you’re prepared for filing season, you can mitigate any potential headaches that might arise.

Being tax efficient is an important part of great financial management. In this blog, a group of South African tax experts at AJM Tax share their tips and explanations on tax issues. Learn everything you need to know about tax, from deductions you never knew about to retirement savings and capital gains. The first Tuesday of every month is Tax Tuesday.