South Africa | Annual EMP501 submission dates and mandatory Income Tax Reference Numbers (SARS)

South Africa | Annual EMP501 submission dates and mandatory Income Tax Reference Numbers (SARS)

South Africa, SARS PAYE Employer Reconciliation (EMP501) annual submission period is currently indicated as 1 April 2026 to 31 May 2026, and SARS will strictly enforce mandatory employee Income Tax Reference Number validation from the February 2026 filing season onwards.
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What is changing
Annual EMP501 Employer Reconciliation submission period (currently published)
  1. SARS currently reflects the annual EMP501 submission period as 1 April 2026 to 31 May 2026.
  1. SARS may publish amended submission dates closer to the time, so employers should monitor the SARS PAYE page for updates
Mandatory employee Income Tax Reference Numbers for EMP501 and tax certificate submissions
  1. From the February 2026 annual filing season onwards, SARS will strictly enforce Income Tax Reference Number validation where it is mandatory.
  1. Employers will not be able to submit EMP501 reconciliations or tax certificates where an employee Income Tax Reference Number is required but missing or invalid.
  1. This requirement applies under the SARS PAYE Business Requirements Specification (BRS), which defines mandatory rules and validation requirements for EMP501 reconciliations and tax certificate submissions (IRP5/IT3(a)).
When an employee Income Tax Reference Number (code 3100) is mandatory (BRS rules)
  1. An employee Income Tax Reference Number (code 3100) is mandatory where:
    1. Type of Certificate (code 3015) is IRP5 and PAYE (code 4102) is greater than zero.
    2. Type of Certificate (code 3015) is IT3(a) and reason code for IT3(a) (code 4150) is not 02 (earn less than the tax threshold) or 04 (non-taxable earnings including nil directives and income protection annuities from 1 March 2015).
When an employee Income Tax Reference Number (code 3100) is optional (BRS rules)
  1. An employee Income Tax Reference Number (code 3100) is optional where:
    1. Type of certificate (code 3015) is ITREG.
    2. Type of certificate (code 3015) is IRP5, PAYE (code 4102) is zero and PAYE on retirement lump sum and severance benefits (code 4115) is greater than zero.
    3. Type of Certificate (code 3015) is IT3(a) and reason code for IT3(a) (code 4150) is 02 (earn less than the tax threshold) or 04 (non-taxable earnings including nil directives and income protection annuities from 1 March 2015).
When an employee Income Tax Reference Number (code 3100) must not be completed (BRS rules)
  1. An employee Income Tax Reference Number (code 3100) must not be completed when:
    1. Nature of person (code 3020) is F (Partnership).
Validation rules that apply where a tax number is required
  1. For Nature of Person types A, B, C, D, M, N or R, the tax number must start with 0, 1, 2, or 3.
  2. For Nature of Person types E, G or H, the tax number must start with 9.
  3. The tax number must pass the Modulus 10 validation test.
Submission readiness reminders
  1. Employers must ensure they wait for filing season to be open before attempting submissions.
  1. Employers should ensure they are using the latest e@syFile software version before submitting EMP501 reconciliations.
Official source
  1. Click here to access the official publication: https://www.sars.gov.za/types-of-tax/pay-as-you-earn/

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