2026 Tax Deadlines: The Complete Calendar for South African SMEs

A tax calendar needs both the obligation and the period it covers. The 2026 year of assessment for most individuals ran from 1 March 2025 to 28 February 2026. The 2026 filing season happens afterwards. Meanwhile, provisional payments for the year ending February 2027 fall in August 2026 and February 2027.

Dates and rules below were checked against the linked SARS guidance on 8 September 2026. Company year-ends, taxpayer categories, VAT periods and specific SARS notices can change which deadline applies.

Individual and trust filing season

Review an auto-assessment against your records. An annual-return deadline is separate from the due date on an assessment for paying tax. These individual windows are not company ITR14 deadlines.

Provisional tax: identify the year-end first

For a February year-end, the following dates separate the completed cycle from the current one:

The first payment generally starts with half the estimated annual normal tax, less applicable credits. The second reconciles the year's estimate and payments. A voluntary top-up can address a shortfall and limit interest; it does not retrospectively cure an underestimation penalty. Companies with other year-ends need their own calendar.

Monthly employer declarations and VAT periods

EMP201: PAYE, UIF and SDL where applicable must be declared and paid within seven days after month-end. If the due date falls on a weekend or public holiday, use the preceding business day. For example, the August 2026 declaration and payment were due on 7 September 2026. Reserve time for bank processing and payment approval.

VAT201: Follow the vendor's assigned VAT period. It is not necessarily monthly or every two months. The standard deadline is the 25th of the month following the tax period, subject to the business-day rule. Vendors using the qualifying electronic filing and payment arrangements have until the last business day of that month. Confirm both submission and payment requirements with SARS.

Employer reconciliation windows

The interim EMP501 reconciles the first six months; the annual reconciliation covers the full tax year. Confirm the current cycle's published window on the SARS PAYE and reconciliation pages. Do not reuse the September–October 2025 interim window as a 2026 deadline or assume a weekend automatically changes a published filing-season closing date.

Reconcile employee details, certificates, monthly EMP201 declarations and payments before submission. Keep unresolved differences in an exceptions schedule rather than changing figures merely to make the totals agree.

Prepare the file before the due date

Assign an owner, reviewer and payment approver for each obligation. Agree three internal dates:

For VAT, retain sales and purchase records, qualifying tax invoices and the VAT reconciliation. For payroll, keep employee changes, calculations, declarations and certificates. For provisional tax, use current trading results and supported tax adjustments rather than copying last year's number without review.

After filing, keep submission confirmation and payment proof with the calculation. Revisit the calendar when the business hires staff, registers for VAT or changes its year-end. Agree any reminder or ongoing compliance service as part of the engagement scope.