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Guide For Codes Applicable To Employees Tax Certificates 2026

South African Revenue ServiceRef: https://www.sars.gov.za/guide-for-codes-applicable-to-employees-tax-certificates-2026/

Official source

Source domain: sars.gov.za

Collected on 28 June 2026

Always confirm details on the official source before acting.

What this means

This document is a South African Revenue Service (SARS) webpage/guide titled “Guide for Codes Applicable to Employees Tax Certificates 2026”. It explains the source codes employers must use when issuing Employees’ Income Tax certificates (IRP5/IT3(a)) to employees, including validation rules and the year of assessment each code is valid for. It also notes employer obligations under the Fourth Schedule to the Income Tax Act to issue IRP5/IT3(a) certificates within the prescribed period and to submit reconciliation documents to SARS within the prescribed period. The guide lists many PAYE-related source codes (for income, allowances, fringe benefits, lump sums, gross remuneration, deductions, and employees’ tax deduction/reason codes) and indicates which codes apply from which years of assessment (including that 2026 codes apply to tax certificates issued for years of assessment from 2025).

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Read out of this document by Govermate's AI, in its own words. Each one quotes the line it came from — confirm on the official source before acting.

reference guide for tax certificate codingOngoing

Use SARS’s 2026 source-code guide to complete Employees’ Income Tax certificates (IRP5/IT3(a))

Employers can use this SARS guide to determine which Employees’ Income Tax certificate source codes to report remuneration, deductions, Employees’ Tax and employer contributions/payments (fringe benefits), including the validation rules and the year of assessment each code is valid for.

Who it is for: employers issuing Employees’ Income Tax certificates to employees
How to act on it: Read the SARS webpage “Guide for Codes Applicable to Employees Tax Certificates 2026” and use the listed source codes and rules when issuing Employees’ Income Tax certificates (IRP5/IT3(a)).

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Facts

Reference

https://www.sars.gov.za/guide-for-codes-applicable-to-employees-tax-certificates-2026/

Key Takeaways

Document title: Guide for Codes Applicable to Employees Tax Certificates 2026
Applies to Employees’ Income Tax certificates (IRP5/IT3(a)) issued for years of assessment from 2025 (for the 2026 guide)
Employer obligations: furnish IRP5/IT3(a) certificates within prescribed period; submit reconciliation documents to SARS within prescribed period (Fourth Schedule to the Income Tax Act)
Certificate number change: certificate number now contains the employer’s PAYE reference number linking employer demographics to the employee
Source codes are grouped by type (Income, Allowances, Fringe Benefit, Lump sum, Gross Remuneration, Deductions, Employees’ Tax Deduction and Reason codes)
Examples of specific code rules: 3601/3651 includes incorporation of 3603/3653 and 3610/3660 for 2010–2012; 3602/3652 incorporates 3604/3654, 3609/3659 and 3612/3662
Directive possibility: for some codes, from the 2026 year of assessment a directive may be issued for the source code
South African Revenue Service (SARS)
Income Tax Act (Fourth Schedule)
PAYE (Pay-As-You-Earn)
IRP5/IT3(a) certificate
Long-term insurer
Retirement annuity fund
Annuity fund
Court
Labour broker