Haven't filed a SARS return
since you left South Africa?

Annual SA tax returns (ITR12)

Current year and back-year filings, including foreign income declarations. If SARS raises audit or verification queries on a return we filed, we handle those too. Clients regularly arrive with 3-8 years of unfiled returns. We work through them in parallel, not one at a time.

AIT & Good Standing clearances

Approval for International Transfer applications for transfers above the SDA, and Good Standing certificates where SARS compliance needs to be formally evidenced.

SARS eFiling profile management

Registration, reactivation, ID and banking detail updates, security contact restoration if you're locked out with an old SA phone number, and full profile cleanup.

SARS registration & admin

New tax number applications, reactivation of dormant numbers, SARS appointments, and VAT/EMP/IT deregistrations for SA businesses being wound down.

Initial review

A short call to understand where things stand - how long since you filed, whether you have SARS correspondence or penalties, what triggered you to act now. No obligation.

eFiling access

We gain authorised practitioner access to your SARS eFiling profile. If the profile is lapsed or locked out, we restore it first. This is where most DIY attempts stall.

Outstanding returns

We prepare and file any outstanding ITR12 returns - current year and any back years needed. Multiple years filed in parallel rather than one at a time.

Clearances & compliance

Once returns are current, we apply for any clearances you need - AIT, Good Standing - and handle SARS audit or verification queries if they arise.

Ongoing or done

We either hand you back a fully compliant profile for one-off needs, or stay on as your ongoing tax practitioner filing each year going forward. Your call.

Need a tax clearance for a large transfer?

Any transfer above the R2 million per calendar year per adult Single Discretionary Allowance (SDA) requires a SARS AIT (Approval for International Transfer). The SDA was doubled from R1 million in the 2026 Budget (announced 25 February 2026), applying to the 2026 calendar year. For transfers above the combined R12 million ceiling (R2m SDA + R10m FIA), a SARB Financial Surveillance Department special approval is also required, supported by a SARS Letter of Compliance. Both pathways start with being fully up to date on your SARS returns - you cannot get a clearance if you have outstanding returns or unresolved disputes. We handle the full sequence: returns first, then clearance, then the transfer.

Note: The R2 million SDA limit was announced on 25 February 2026 and became usable when SARB issued its implementing circular in March 2026. We recommend confirming your bank's processing at the new limit before committing to a specific transfer structure.

Do I still need to file SA tax returns if I live in the UK?

It depends on your SA tax residency status. If you have not formally ceased your SA tax residency (a process called tax emigration), SARS still considers you an SA tax resident and you are required to file an annual return declaring your worldwide income, even if you are paying UK tax on everything. In most cases the UK-SA double taxation agreement prevents you from being taxed twice on the same income, but the filing obligation itself remains until you formally cease residency. We are not tax advisers for your personal tax planning, but we handle the SARS filing side end-to-end.

What happens if I have not filed SA tax returns for several years?

SARS charges administrative penalties for each month a return is outstanding, and these accumulate across years. We regularly help clients who have five, seven, even ten years of unfiled returns, with penalty totals running into the tens or hundreds of thousands of rand. SARS is generally more reasonable when taxpayers voluntarily come forward to get current than when they have to chase you - the sooner you act, the less it typically costs.

What is the difference between an AIT and a Good Standing tax clearance?

A Good Standing tax clearance confirms that you are up to date on your SARS obligations and is used for various formal purposes. An AIT (Approval for International Transfer) is specifically required when you want to transfer funds out of South Africa above the R2 million per calendar year per adult Single Discretionary Allowance, or any amount for SA tax non-residents. Both require your SARS affairs to be fully in order first - the clearance is the output, not the starting point.

Do I need to be in South Africa to sort out my SARS tax?

No. Everything can be handled remotely from the UK. Once you give our tax practitioner authorised access to your eFiling profile, we can prepare and file returns, respond to SARS queries, apply for clearances, and manage correspondence entirely on your behalf. You do not need to fly back to SA or visit a SARS branch.

What is SARS eFiling and why do I need a profile?

SARS eFiling is the online portal through which all SA tax administration now happens - returns, payments, correspondence, clearance applications. If you do not have a profile, or your profile has lapsed, we can register or reactivate it for you. If you are locked out because your security contact details are outdated (old SA phone numbers you no longer have access to, for example), we can restore access as part of our profile management service.

I do not remember my SA tax number. Can you help?

Yes. This is one of the most common first questions we get - most people who left SA years ago have lost track of their tax number. We can retrieve it from SARS using your ID number and other identifying details. If you were never formally registered (common for people who left SA before starting work), we can apply for a new tax number as part of the onboarding process.

Will SARS penalise me for filing late?

Yes, SARS charges monthly administrative penalties on outstanding returns. However, where there are reasonable grounds we can also apply for penalty remission on your behalf. The cost of filing late is usually limited to the accumulated penalties themselves - the much larger risk is continuing to ignore the situation and allowing more years to accumulate.