Your Tax Deadlines for October 2024

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  • 07 October – Monthly PAYE submissions and payments
  • 21 October – End of filing season for individual taxpayers (non-provisional)
  • 25 October – Value Added Tax (VAT) manual submissions and payments
  • 30 October – Excise duty payments
  • 31 October – VAT electronic submissions and payments, Corporate Income Tax Provisional Tax payments where applicable, and Personal Income Tax Top-up Provisional Tax payments.

Ready to Submit Your Interim EMP501 Reconciliation By 31 October?

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“The interim reconciliation process has become an integral part of the employer reconciliation and assists employers…” (SARS)

Employers are assisted by the interim EMP501 reconciliation, says SARS, because it makes it easier to:

  • make more accurate annual reconciliation submissions
  • maintain an up-to-date employee database
  • register employees for income tax purposes

Of course, there are other benefits, such as maintaining your compliant tax status, and avoiding wasting money on stiff penalties and interest.

It goes without saying that you want to reap all these benefits for your business. Allow us to help you to understand what needs to be done. We will be able to assist in ensuring a smooth, hassle-free submission process – even with the next deadline right around the corner.


EMP501 Reconciliation fast facts

  • All employers are required to submit an EMP501 Reconciliation
  • There are two deadlines in each tax year. For the 2025 tax year the deadlines are:

 

  • 31 October 2024 – 2025 Interim Reconciliation (for the period 1 March 2024 – 31 August 2024)
  • 31 May 2025 – 2025 Annual Reconciliation (for the period 1 September 2024 – 28 February 2025)


Potential pitfalls

The EMP501 Reconciliation is an intricate process which creates many opportunities for errors:

  • Payroll information must be verified
  • Correct deduction of employees’ tax (PAYE), Skills Development Levy (SDL), and Unemployment Insurance Fund (UIF) contributions must be verified
  • Deductions must reconcile with IRP5 / IT3(a) tax certificates
  • Employment Tax Incentive (ETI) values claimed must be reconciled
  • EMP201 returns must be reconciled with actual payments made to SARS
  • EMP201 returns must be reconciled with EMP501 statements
  • Employee information needs to be updated on eFiling
  • Employees without tax numbers must be registered
  • Employer’s Reconciliation Declaration (EMP501) needs to be submitted via the eFiling website or the e@syFile application

This is an intricate and time-consuming process, and, as SARS puts it, “accuracy and timely filing are critical”.


Consequences of non-compliance

This is serious business. Inaccuracies or late submission can result in severe consequences.

  • Calculating PAYE liability incorrectly will result in the imposition of both penalties and interest. This includes corrections made on the EMP501 reconciliation, as any shortfall is attributed to the last month of the reconciliation period.
  • If an employer submits their EMP501 late, administrative penalties will be charged. The penalty will equal 1% of the year’s PAYE liability, increasing each month by 1% (up to a maximum of 10% of the year’s PAYE liability).
  • An employer who wilfully or negligently fails to submit an EMP201 or EMP501 return to SARS is guilty of an offence and could face a fine or imprisonment for a period of up to two years.


The bottom line 

The penalties are stiff, and the submission process is fraught with opportunities for inaccuracies and errors.

How To Avoid an eFiling Profile Hijacking

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“…it is vital that all stakeholders in the digital ecosystem, including the taxpayers, SARS, and the banks, work together to prevent and combat profile hijacking.” (SARS)

The recent spike in the number of SARS eFiling profiles being hacked by cybercriminals should raise red flags for every taxpayer. It’s got so bad that the Minister of Finance has given the Office of the Tax Ombud (OTO) approval to conduct a review of SARS’ service failures in assisting taxpayers timeously with eFiling profile hijacking.

This is a type of cybercrime in which fraudsters use phishing, malware, or social engineering to access and modify your personal or professional profile on a digital platform like SARS’ eFiling without your knowledge or consent.


Has this ever happened to you? 

  • You receive an email, SMS, or WhatsApp, seemingly from SARS, asking you to click on a link or attachment to update your profile, verify your information, or claim a refund. It appears legitimate, and not realising it’s a fake, you just do as the message says…
  • You receive a call from someone pretending to be a SARS official, asking you to confirm your personal details or to click on a link, and you do, not realising that it will install malware on your device…
  • You are contacted by someone pretending to be a SARS official, offering you tax assistance or advice, and asking you to share your login credentials, OTP, or personal information with them, and you do…

Fraudsters use methods like these to trick you into revealing your login credentials. An alarming number of taxpayers have fallen victim to these unscrupulous predators, despite continuous system enhancements to secure and strengthen the security of SARS’ channels.


What could happen if my SARS eFiling profile is hacked? 

Fraudsters can access and modify your details (e.g. contact number, password) without your knowledge or consent – with serious consequences for your tax compliance and financial security.

They can then also change the bank details to divert a SARS refund due to you into their own accounts. And they can even submit fraudulent returns on your behalf to claim refunds!


How can I prevent profile hijacking?

Prevention is far better than cure. Here are a few pointers, direct from SARS.

  • Use a strong and unique password for your eFiling profile. Change it regularly.
  • Don’t use the same password for other online accounts or services.
  • Never share your login credentials, OTP, or personal information with anyone, even if they claim to be from SARS.
  • If you hear about a security compromise at any organisation you deal with, immediately log in to your account and update your password.
  • Always access eFiling through the official website (https://www.sars.gov.za) or the SARS eFiling mobi app.
  • Do not click on any links or attachments in emails, SMSes or WhatsApps that claim to be from SARS, and never “confirm” or submit your login details after clicking on a link.
  • Keep your computer and mobile devices updated with the latest security software and antivirus programs.
  • Activate multi-factor or “app” authentication on your eFiling profile. This will authenticate you every time you log in by sending an OTP message to your registered mobile number or email address or requesting you to authorise the action via your mobile phone.


We can help to keep you safe  

As your accountants, we are well versed in avoiding these scams. Whenever you receive communications that seem to be from SARS, simply contact us.

  • We are alerted to all known scams claiming to be from SARS, so we can quickly help you to identify phishing attempts.
  • We can check your eFiling profile and tax information regularly and report any discrepancies or unauthorized changes to SARS immediately.
  • We constantly update our security details to ensure the safety of our profile and our clients’ profiles.


In summary

SARS itself recognises that profile hijacking is a serious crime that harms taxpayers. But prevention is always better than cure. Take proactive steps to protect your security and contact us whenever you receive communications that seem to be from SARS.