Tax season 2026: What to do if you receive an auto-assessment
· The South African
Tax season is finally here, and as usual, the South African Revenue Service (SARS) will issue auto-assessments for some taxpayers. What does this mean, and what steps can one take after the auto-assessment?
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An auto-assessment, which is part of SARS’ commitment to make the fulfilment of one’s tax obligation as seamless as possible, is based on the data SARS receives from employers, financial institutions, medical schemes, retirement fund administrators, and other third-party data providers.
WHAT TO DO WHEN YOU RECEIVE AN AUTO-ASSESSMENT FROM SARS
Taxpayers selected for Auto Assessment will receive a notification via SMS or email from 1 – 12 July 2026, advising them of their outcome — whether:
- A refund is due to them, or
- Payment is required to SARS; or
- It is a zero assessment – meaning nothing is due to the taxpayer or to SARS.
To check if you will be auto-assessed, taxpayers can visit My Auto Assessment Status.
If no Auto-Assessment notification is received by 12 July 2026, it means that you will not be auto-assessed and must complete and submit an income tax return from 13 July 2026.
If you receive an Auto-Assessment notification, it is important that you:
- Review the Auto-Assessment. Log in to eFiling or the SARS MobiApp and check if all information is correct.
- If the information is correct, then no further action is required, and no income tax return needs to be submitted.
- If the information is incorrect, check all the information on the income tax return, add any missing details and submit using eFiling or the SARS MobiApp.
Filing Season is more than an administrative process; it is a national moment of engagement between the tax administration and South Africans. At its core is a psychological compact of trust, taxpayers trust that when a refund is legitimately due, the tax administration will… pic.twitter.com/q8jAzlGZ4a
— SA Revenue Service (@sarstax) June 18, 2026
HISTORICAL INCOME-TAX ASSESSMENT NOTIFICATIONS
Meanwhile, SARS has provided an update regarding historical tax- assessment notifications.
The revenue service said some taxpayers may have received a notification on eFiling about a historical income-tax assessment.
“If you received such a notice, you do not need to do anything. The notification relates to a past tax period and does not affect your 2026 tax return or the current filing season. The notice was generated as part of a data synchronisation process. If your tax return for the relevant period had already been submitted and processed, you can ignore the notification.”