SARS eFiling Guide

What Is SARS eFiling?

This SARS eFiling guide exists because so many South Africans hit the same wall: they know they need to submit a tax return, but the eFiling portal itself is where things start feeling confusing. SARS eFiling is the South African Revenue Service's official online platform for managing your tax affairs without visiting a branch. Through it, an individual taxpayer, a small business, or a registered tax practitioner can register as an eFiler, submit returns, view assessments and track refunds entirely online.

SARS eFiling South Africa covers Personal Income Tax, provisional tax, VAT and other tax types, but this guide focuses on what an individual taxpayer needs most: registering an account, logging in, submitting an ITR12 income tax return, and checking on a refund. Everything here reflects how SARS eFiling online actually works today, laid out as a SARS eFiling step by step reference you can come back to each filing season.

How to Register for SARS eFiling

Before you can log in anywhere, you need a profile. Here's how to register for SARS eFiling online from scratch.

1. Go to the official SARS eFiling website and select the option to register as a new user.
2. Choose the correct profile type: Individual, Tax Practitioner, or Organisation. Most people filing their own return select Individual.
3. Enter your personal details, including your full name, South African ID number (or passport number for foreign nationals), and your existing SARS tax number if you already have one from a previous registration.
4. Provide a working cellphone number and email address. SARS uses both to send a one-time PIN and to communicate with you going forward, so accuracy matters here.
5. Complete SARS eFiling verification by entering the SARS eFiling OTP sent to your phone or email.
6. Set a username and password for your new SARS eFiling account, and store both somewhere safe.

If you don't yet have a tax number, completing this process also triggers SARS tax registration: SARS automatically registers you for income tax and issues a tax reference number as part of how to register on SARS eFiling for the first time. This single flow effectively covers both eFiling registration South Africa requires and standalone SARS income tax registration, so there's no need to register separately elsewhere before you can register for income tax.

How to Log In to SARS eFiling

Once your account exists, logging in each time is simple. Here's how to login to SARS eFiling:

1. Go to the SARS eFiling login page.
2. Enter your SARS eFiling username (this may be your ID number, tax reference number, or a custom username you chose at registration).
3. Enter your SARS eFiling password.
4. Complete two-factor verification if prompted, usually a one-time PIN sent to your registered phone or email.

The SARS eFiling sign in process is the same whether you're on a desktop browser or the SARS MobiApp, though the MobiApp is generally the faster option for a quick check on your phone. If your SARS eFiling login isn't working, skip ahead to the troubleshooting section below before assuming your account has a deeper problem.

Submitting Your Tax Return on SARS eFiling (ITR12)

The ITR12 is the standard individual income tax return South Africa uses for a natural person's annual Personal Income Tax submission. Here's how to submit tax return on eFiling from start to finish:

1. Log in to your eFiling profile once SARS filing season opens, which is usually announced by SARS each year.
2. Request your ITR12 from the Returns menu. SARS pre-populates much of the form using data already on file, such as IRP5 information from your employer.
3. Check every pre-populated field carefully, and add any income or deductions SARS wouldn't automatically know about, such as freelance income, rental income, or additional medical expenses.
4. Upload supporting documents if requested. Knowing how to upload documents on SARS eFiling matters most if SARS selects your return for verification or audit; the portal will show exactly which documents it wants.
5. Submit the ITR12 once you've reviewed it. This step completes your SARS tax return submission for the year.
6. Wait for your assessment. SARS typically issues a SARS Notice of Assessment within a few days of a straightforward ITR12 eFiling submission, showing whether you owe money or are due a refund.

Filing an individual tax return SARS requires each year is generally simpler than it sounds once you've been through the process once. If you're comparing your own numbers before you file, our PAYE calculator and full SARS tax tables use the same official brackets SARS applies during tax return assessment, so the figures on your ITR12 should line up closely with what you've already estimated.

If you ever need to make changes after registering, such as how to update details on SARS eFiling or how to change bank details on SARS eFiling for a refund payout, this is done under your taxpayer profile settings, not on the return itself. If a submitted SARS tax return isn't appearing where you expect it, see "SARS tax return not showing on eFiling" in the troubleshooting section below.

Finding and Checking Your SARS Tax Number

Your SARS tax number, formally your SARS tax reference number, is a unique identifier tied to your tax affairs for life. Knowing how to find SARS tax number details matters whenever a new employer, bank or eFiling form asks for it.

• Check your SARS Notice of Registration, also called your IT150 SARS document, issued when you first registered.
• Look at any previous SARS Notice of Assessment, which lists your reference number at the top.
• Log in to SARS eFiling, where your SARS income tax number appears on your taxpayer profile page.
• Check an old payslip, since employers list your tax number alongside PAYE deductions.

If none of these are available, contacting the SARS Contact Centre with your ID number is the fastest way to check SARS tax number details and confirm how to get SARS tax number information reissued if the original IT150 has been lost.

SARS Tax Refunds: Checking Your Status

Once your return is assessed, you'll either owe SARS, owe nothing, or be due a SARS tax refund. Here's how to check SARS refund status at any point after submitting:

1. Log in to eFiling or the SARS MobiApp and open your submitted return.
2. Look at the assessment outcome, which will clearly show a refund amount if one is due.
3. Track the payment status shown against that return, which updates as the SARS refund payment moves through processing.

A common question is when will SARS pay my refund. In most straightforward cases, a SARS refund pays out within a few business days of assessment, provided your banking details on file are correct and your tax compliance status has no outstanding issues. If your SARS refund delayed beyond the usual window, it's often because SARS has flagged the return for manual verification, or because banking details need to be confirmed or updated. Checking SARS refund status regularly through eFiling is the most reliable way to know where things stand, since it updates before any letter or SMS notification typically arrives.

Troubleshooting: Login, Password and Registration Problems

Most SARS eFiling frustration comes down to a handful of recurring issues. Here's how to work through the most common ones.

Forgot SARS eFiling password: use the "Forgot Password" link on the login page. SARS verifies your identity against your ID number and registered contact details before allowing a reset, so make sure those are current.

Forgot SARS eFiling username: select "Forgot Username" on the same login screen. SARS will usually confirm it via OTP to your registered cellphone or email rather than displaying it outright, for security.

How to reset SARS eFiling password: beyond the standard reset flow, if your registered phone number has changed and you no longer receive the OTP, you'll need to contact the SARS Contact Centre or visit a branch to update your details before a reset can go through.

SARS eFiling OTP not received: confirm the contact details on your taxpayer profile are correct, check spam or junk folders for the email version, and request the OTP again after a few minutes rather than repeatedly retrying immediately.

SARS eFiling login not working: this is often a browser issue rather than an account issue. Clear your cache, try a different supported browser, or attempt login through the SARS MobiApp instead to isolate the problem.

SARS eFiling registration not working: double-check that your name, ID number and any existing tax reference number are entered exactly as they appear on official SARS documents. A single mismatched digit is the most common cause of a failed registration.

SARS tax return not showing on eFiling: submissions can take a short while to reflect after filing, especially during peak filing season. If it still isn't visible after a day or two, confirm the submission actually completed rather than being left in draft, and check under the correct tax year on your returns list.

Related reading

• How PAYE Works in South Africa: how your monthly income tax is actually calculated before it ever reaches an ITR12.
• PAYE vs Provisional Tax: which system applies if you have both salary and freelance income.
• SARS Tax Tables: the exact brackets, rebates and thresholds SARS applies to every tax return.
• PAYE & Income Tax FAQ: more worked examples and short answers to common tax questions.
• South Africa Tax Calculators: every free calculator on this site in one place.

Frequently asked questions

Whether you're registering for the first time or just need a refresher before filing season, this SARS eFiling guide is meant to be the page you bookmark and come back to each year. Once your return is submitted, use our PAYE calculator to double-check your own numbers, or browse the full South Africa tax calculators hub for every other tool on this site.