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2012
HOW TO eFILE YOUR INCOME TAX
RETURN (ITR12)
STEP 1: REGISTRATION FOR eFILING
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NEW USERS
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To register, go to www.sarsefiling.co.za.
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Click “Register”
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Select:
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You will need to register as an eFiler before you can file your income tax return electronically.
“For Individual”; or
“For Tax Practitioner”.
How to eFile your Income Tax Return (ITR12)
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Once you have read through and accepted the eFiling Terms and Conditions, check the “I Accept” box and then click
“Continue” to proceed with your registration.
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Select the “Individual” button to proceed with the registration.
How to eFile your Income Tax Return (ITR12)
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The following message will appear to confirm that the selection was correct. Select “OK” to continue with the individual
registration and “Cancel” to register a different entity.
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For an individual you will need to enter all your personal information in order to register as an eFiler. Ensure that all captured
information is correct. You will need:
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ID number
Tax Reference number
Select, “Yes”, if you are registered for Provisional Tax
Select whether you are married
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“Out of community of property/not married”; or
“In community of property”.
Preferred method of contact
Address details
Banking details
Practitioner’s details, if applicable.
For Tax Practitioner you will need to select “Tax Practitioner”
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Personal details
Complete your personal details
Organisation information.
Complete your registration by choosing your Login Name and Password. Click on the “I” information button for further
information about your login ad password rules.
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How to eFile your Income Tax Return (ITR12)
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A Password Hint and security questions are required in the event that you forget your password. Verifying of the security pin
is required.
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Click “Register” and you will automatically receive your unique login name – which is the login you choose along with four
digits.
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REGISTERED USERS
Simply login to eFiling using your existing Login Name and Password.
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If you have forgotten your Login Name and/or Password, click on the question mark icon.
How to eFile your Income Tax Return (ITR12)
Note: If the login and password details are incorrect, an error message will be displayed on the screen for the user.
STEP 2: GETTING STARTED
Remember – Do not submit supporting documentation to SARS, you must retain the documents for a period of five years
should SARS require them in the future.
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THE INCOME TAX WORK PAGE
The Income Tax Work page is displayed when you login to eFiling. It is within this page that you request, complete, save and
file your ITR12 return to SARS.
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A message will appear informing you that your ITR12 return has been generated and contains the latest information
SARS has on record for you. Please read this and select “OK”.
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If your ITR12 return has been issued to you, it will appear within the Income Tax Work Page, displayed within the grid.
How to eFile your Income Tax Return (ITR12)
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Open your income tax return by clicking on “ITR12”.
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If your ITR12 return has not been issued, this means that your registration information could not be verified against
the SARS system. Please call the SARS Contact Centre on 0800 00 SARS (7277) to resolve the problem.
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The Income Tax Work Page also provides you with the ability to obtain a preliminary calculation of your tax liability once you
have completed your ITR12 return.
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Click on “Tax Calculator” to gain the preliminary indication of your likely assessment
Use the “Tax Calculator” button only after you have completed your ITR12 return.
Before opening your ITR12 return, click the “Refresh IRP5 Data” to ensure your populated ITR12 return contains the most
updated data, as supplied to SARS by your employer/pension fund.
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If you have already submitted your ITR12 return to SARS via one of the alternative channels, you can update your eFiling
profile to reflect your submission.
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Click “Manually submitted” to change the status of your ITR12 return to “Filed”
You will be prompted to confirm the submission of your return, via any other channel except eFiling, as you will not
be able to file after clicking “Manually submitted”.
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Click “Request Historic Documents” which enables you to request a Statement of Account or a historic Assessment notice.
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Select “I want to request a historic Notice of Assessment”
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Select the year, from 1999 – 2010
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Select the period, for which you would like to receive your Statement of Account, either six months to
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Select “Request”.
Select “Next”; or
Select “I want to request a Statement of Account”
date or user defined date range and enter the dates as required
STEP 3: INCOME TAX RETURN (ITR12)
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If you are using “Flash Player” to complete you ITR12 return, the following toolbar will appear:
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To navigate from page to page, either make use of the arrow keys on the keyboard or the blue arrow keys as
indicated above.
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If you are using “ADOBE Reader” to complete you ITR12 return, the following toolbar will appear, as per last year’s return:
How to eFile your Income Tax Return (ITR12)
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Open your income tax return by clicking on “ITR12”. A warning message regarding your banking details will be displayed.
The warning message indicates that any changes to banking details will be verified before your banking profile is updated. It
also states that any refund due to you (if applicable) will be processed after your banking details are received and verified. It
also advises you that you may be required to visit a SARS branch to present supporting documents and that SARS will inform
you of this if required. Once you have read the warning click “OK”.
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A questionnaire is displayed as the first page of your ITR12 return. This is a wizard which will help you to create a customised
ITR12 return. However, you only need to update the information if your tax affairs have changed over the past year, as your
ITR12 return will be customised with the same fields that you requested last year. To add extra income and deductions sections
to your ITR12 return, select the relevant options on the wizard. Once completed click “Create Form”.
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A new question is included in the standard wizard of the form, relating to expenditure against the employer provided vehicle.
If this section is selected, a container will be created on the form to be completed.
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How to eFile your Income Tax Return (ITR12)
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For a more detailed explanation of the various sections of the Income Tax Act No.58 of 1962 that will be applied during the
assessment process of the ITR12 income tax returns, please refer to the ITR12 Comprehensive Guide published on the SARS
website www.sars.gov.za.
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The following page of your ITR12 return is displayed with your personal information. You will notice that your residential
address information is blank. As part of a standardisation process and for verification purpose, you need to enter your address.
Note 1: The personal information must be that of the taxpayer and not those of the tax practitioner completing the return on
behalf of a client.
Note 2: Mandatory fields are shown with a red ring around the required fields. It means these fields must be completed.
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Ensure all the information on the first page is correct and up-to-date.
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If you select “Married in community of property”, the following fields become mandatory:
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Spouse initials
Spouse ID No.; or
Spouse Passport No
Passport Country.
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If the populated information is incorrect, enter the correct information in the fields provided.
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Changes to Banking Details
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With effect from 1 July 2011 any changes to your banking details will be verified by SARS before your profile is updated.
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SARS will notify you if you are required to visit a SARS branch to present supporting documentation.
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If you are requested to present yourself at a SARS branch, the following documentation must be submitted in order for the
banking detail changes to be effected:
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Original identity document/passport or affidavit to justify the absence of identity document/passport together with
a temporary identity document/passport
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Certified copy of identity document or passport
Original stamped bank statement depending on the bank format (in colour or on a bank letterhead) not more than
How to eFile your Income Tax Return (ITR12)
three months old that confirms the account holder’s name, account number, account type, and branch code where
applicable
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In the case where the taxpayer has opened a new bank account and cannot produce a bank statement:
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An original letter from the bank on the bank’s letterhead with the bank stamp stating the date that the
bank account was opened.
Original proof of residential address e.g. a municipal account/ telephone account of the taxpayer which is not more
than three months old, reflecting the name and residential address of the taxpayer; or
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A confirmation of another individual’s or entity’s residential address, in which instance a CRA01 – Confirmation
of Entity Residential Address form must be completed. The CRA01 can be obtained on the SARS website www.
sars.gov.za, or may be obtained from your nearest SARS branch. In the case where the taxpayer does not own a
property, but lives on the property of the Tribal Chief, the Acting Chief can complete the CRA01 or a signed letter
indicating that the taxpayer resides on that property will be acceptable. •
There are certain exceptional circumstances under which SARS will allow verification of banking details to be done by a person
who is not the account holder and who has power of attorney. Such a person will still have to visit a SARS branch with the
relevant supporting documentation depending on the exceptional circumstances.
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The exceptional circumstances are:
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Any estate due to death or sequestration
Taxpayer who is incapacitated / terminally ill
Taxpayer who is a non-resident (emigrant, expatriate, foreigner and temporarily outside the Republic)
Taxpayer who is imprisoned
Taxpayer is a minor.
For a list of supporting documentation required for these exceptional circumstances, refer to the SARS website www.sars.
gov.za > I want to > Change my bank details
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Joint bank account – Where a joint bank account is held with another person, both members of the joint account
are required to present themselves at the SARS branch to have their details verified before SARS can accept the
change of banking details.
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Banking detail changes cannot be made via:
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E-mail
Fax
Post
The SARS Contact Centre.
Should you require any further information concerning banking detail changes, you can:
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Go to the SARS website www.sars.gov.za > I want to > Change my bank details
Visit your nearest SARS branch
Call the SARS Contact Centre on 0800 00 SARS (7277).
REMEMBER: Without accurate bank details SARS cannot issue you a refund, where this is due.
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A warning message will appear to inform you that all changes to your banking details will be verified before
updating your banking profile. Once you have read the information click “OK” and then select the relevant bank
name from the displayed list.
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How to eFile your Income Tax Return (ITR12)
Note 3: If you would like to remove the left hand menu to make the screen bigger, click on the double arrow in the top right
hand corner. Also, if you click on the zoom percentage arrow and click on “Fit Width” it will enlarge the screen.
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If you have no local savings or cheque account, select “No local savings or cheque account declaration” box.
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Select “Yes” or “No” to answer the question on the declaration
Select the relevant reason for no savings or cheque bank account
Mark the agreement statement box with “X”.
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You will be required to complete the declaration for no local savings/cheque account.
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Please note: If you indicated that you do not have a local savings or cheque account and later this is found to be incorrect,
SARS will impose administrative penalties of up to R16000 depending on your taxable income.
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You are reminded to your check banking details if the system identifies that you have filed incorrect banking account number.
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To correct your banking account number:
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Click “Correct Banking Details” to rectify the account number; or
Click “Continue” if you certain are that your banking details are correct:
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If you choose to continue and your banking details are incorrect, your return will not be filed but will be
saved until you correct the banking details.
How to eFile your Income Tax Return (ITR12)
2012
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If the banking details are incorrect the status of the return will be displayed as “Saved with invalid bank details”.
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Capture your correct banking details and file the return.
Remember – check the status of your return to ensure that it reflects as filed.
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Compare your IRP5/IT3 (a) certificate(s) received to the populated information provided on your ITR12 return.
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Where your employer/pension fund has not submitted your IRP5/IT3 (a) information to SARS, your ITR12 return will not be
populated. You have two options:
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Click on “Save Return” and try again later
Enter the information yourself in the fields provided.
To try again later, save your partially completed ITR12 return and login at a later stage to check if your IRP5/IT3(a) information
has been updated. You do this by clicking “Refresh IRP5 data” to ensure your ITR12 return contains the most up-to-date
information provided to SARS.
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If you choose to file your ITR12 return when all your IRP5/IT3(a) information has not been submitted by your employer/pension
fund(s), your assessment may be delayed and you may be required to submit supporting documentation.
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How to eFile your Income Tax Return (ITR12)
STEP 4: COMPLETING THE REMAINING PARTS OF THE INCOME TAX RETURN (ITR12)
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Depending on which of the wizard options were selected, sections on additional income and deductions must be completed,
were applicable.
Please note: Medical deductions in respect of a person with a disability – As a result of a change in legislation, an ITR-DD
form, Confirmation of diagnosis of disability for an individual taxpayer, which is available on the SARS website www.sars.gov.za, has been designed and contains the criteria for the diagnosis of disability. These legislative changes are effective
from 1 March 2009 and are applicable for the 2012 year of assessment.
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For further assistance, please refer to the Tax Guide on the Deduction of Medical Expenses available on the SARS website
www.sars.gov.za.
STEP 5: FILE YOUR INCOME TAX RETURN (ITR12)
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At any stage you can save your ITR12 return before filing it by clicking on “Save Return”. Once you have captured all the
information on your ITR12 return and you are ready to submit it to SARS, simply click “File”.
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When you click “File”, your ITR12 return will be submitted to SARS. eFiling will check the correctness of specific information.
Where information is incorrect and/or incomplete, eFiling will prompt you to correct the captured information before your
ITR12 return can be submitted.
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How to eFile your Income Tax Return (ITR12)
Note: If you would like to change any information on your return after you have filed, click on “Request Correction’ on the
Income Tax Work Page. Your return will appear and you can make the necessary changes and resubmit.
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You will receive confirmation when your ITR12 return has been filed.
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Once you click “Continue”, a button will appear on the Income Tax Work Page, enabling you to query the status of your
ITR12 return.
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This is an example of a status report:
How to eFile your Income Tax Return (ITR12)
STEP 6: USING THE TAX CALCULATOR TO CHECK FOR ACCURACY
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Before filing your ITR12 return to SARS, we recommend that you check your return for accuracy using the tax calculator
function which will provide you with an indication of your expected assessment. If the result is significantly different from
what you are expecting, you may have made an error in completing your return. To use the tax calculator, save your return
(“Save Return”) and click on “Tax Calculator”.
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Depending on the complexity of your return, either a standard or complex calculation will be performed. Pictured is an
example of a standard calculation. If the complex calculation is performed, the results may only be available within 72 hours.
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This version will be saved as is available on the work page under “Calculation results”. If you make changes on your return
subsequent to this, a message will appear giving you the option to re-calculate.
STEP 7: VIEW YOUR ASSESSMENTS (ITA34) AND STATEMENT OF ACCOUNT (ITSA)
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Once your ITR12 return has been assessed by SARS, the ITA34 will appear under Notice of Assessment. Click on “ITA34” to
view the assessment.
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If you wish to view your history of transactions with SARS, you must request a Statement of Account. Click “Request Historic
Notice”.
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How to eFile your Income Tax Return (ITR12)
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Select the year for which you would like to view historic transactions.
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Choose the option for request of statement of account and then click “Next”.
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Select the period, for which you would like to receive your Statement of Account and then click “Request”.
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A message will be displayed to indicate that the Statement of Account is being requested from SARS and the screen below
indicates that the request has been submitted successfully.
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Click on the link provided to view your statement of account.
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The Statement of Account can also be viewed on the Income Tax Work page.
STEP 8: OBJECTING TO YOUR ASSESSMENT
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If you object to the calculated assessment received from SARS, click “Dispute”.
How to eFile your Income Tax Return (ITR12)
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Select
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“I would like to file a Notice of Objection”; or
“I would like to file a Notice of Appeal”.
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You will be asked “Are you sure you want to create a new dispute”, Select “OK”.
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The NOO1 - Notice of Objection form, or NOA1 - Notice of Appeal, will open.
NOO1 - Notice of Objection form
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How to eFile your Income Tax Return (ITR12)
NOA1 - Notice of Appeal
Note: Mandatory fields are shown with a red ring around the required fields
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Complete the form, and select “File”.
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For more information on the dispute process, please refer to www.sars.gov.za > All publications > Taxes - Operating Procedures
- Income Tax and then click on “More”.
STEP 9: OBTAINING HELP
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Should you require any further assistance, you can:
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Call the SARS Contact Centre on 0800 00 SARS (7277) where the operating hours are: 08h00 - 17h00 on weekdays
(excluding Wednesdays, which are from 09h00 to 17h00). The Contact Centre is closed on weekends and public
holidays
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Visit your local SARS branch.
How to eFile your Income Tax Return (ITR12)