Why your SARS auto-assessment might be wrong, even when it looks right

From today, taxpayers who received a SARS auto-assessment this month can submit a corrected return if something is inaccurate or missing.

According to Pedri Reyneke, CEO of Multilink Financial Services, one of the most commonly overlooked corrections involves a contribution made months, sometimes years, before this year's assessment was ever generated.

SARS has already auto-assessed more than 1.9 million taxpayers this filing season and paid out roughly R8 billion in refunds within 72 hours, with more than six million assessments expected in total.

That speed reflects this year's system enhancements, along with employer, medical scheme, and retirement fund data arriving complete and correctly matched to each taxpayer.

Retirement annuity contributions are where that match most often breaks down, particularly when a contribution was made through a provider, or in a year, that doesn't line up neatly with the current assessment period.

"SARS is processing refunds faster than ever, which raises the bar for what taxpayers assume has already been captured correctly and verified on their behalf," says Reyneke.

"However, the system is only able to interpret data it has been provided, and nothing beyond that."

How The Deduction Works

Retirement annuity contributions are deductible up to 27.5% of a taxpayer's remuneration or taxable income under section 11F of the Income Tax Act.

Effective 1 March 2026 (for the 2026/2027 tax year), the maximum annual monetary limit for retirement fund deductions was increased from R350 000 to R430 000.

Contributions above that limit carry forward automatically to the following tax year, and should appear on the taxpayer's notice of assessment, the ITA34.

The challenge is that this figure depends on the current assessment correctly linking back to a historic contribution.

When that link breaks, the deduction goes with it, and there is rarely anything that stands out on an assessment that signals something has gone missing.

"Most people treat their retirement annuity as something they set up once and never look at again,” notes Reyneke.

“The notice of assessment is not designed to automatically detect a missing figure. The only person checking for any discrepancies is the taxpayer interpreting the document, or an advisor a client trusts to pick up such errors."

What To Check Before Accepting

Reyneke recommends that anyone who has changed jobs, switched RA providers, or made contributions outside a standard payroll deduction, look at their assessment and confirm whether last year's excess contribution has been included.

If it is missing, or the figure looks unfamiliar, that is worth raising before accepting the assessment or letting the acceptance period lapse.

"You can still submit a corrected return through eFiling until 23 October 2026, even after accepting an assessment," adds Reyneke.

"Checking your own numbers is the same discipline you should apply to any document with your name and your money attached to it."

Other common gaps in auto-assessments to look out for include home office expenses, actual travel claims based on a logbook, and rental or freelance income, none of which SARS's third-party data is designed to capture.

Filing Season Advice

Reyneke's advice for this filing season is simple: treat July as an annual check-in on your tax affairs.

"Every year, I consult with multiple clients who have old contributions that never made their way back into their assessment, and which they were unaware of," Reyneke concludes.

"The earlier it gets caught, the less time and money it costs to fix. Read your assessment before you accept it - without exception - to verify that everything is accounted for."