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SARS e-Filing Directive Errors: What Every South African Taxpayer Needs to Know
If you have interacted with your employer’s payroll department, a retirement fund administrator, or a tax practitioner recently and been told there is a delay or problem with your tax directive, you are not alone — and the issue is not on your side.
SARS has recently rolled out a series of system enhancements to its e-Filing platform specifically relating to the tax directive functionality. The intention behind these updates was entirely positive, but the rollout has introduced a number of technical errors currently affecting practitioners and employers across South Africa.
At TTT Financial Group, we are actively monitoring the situation, working around it where possible, and communicating with clients wherever their matters are directly affected. This article gives you the full picture of what tax directives are, why they matter, what went wrong, and how all of this connects to bigger legislative changes — including the Two-Pot Retirement System and the 2025/2026 personal income tax bracket adjustments.
What Is a Tax Directive — and Why Does It Matter?
A tax directive is a formal instruction SARS issues to your employer or fund, specifying the exact rate of tax to deduct from a specific payment. Without a valid directive, certain payments simply cannot be processed correctly.
Directives are required for retirement fund lump sums, Two-Pot savings pot withdrawals, severance packages, commission earner fixed rate deductions, and annuity income. When the directive system has errors, the downstream consequences are real — people waiting for real money.
Common situations where a directive is required
- Lump sum payments from retirement funds — on resignation, retrenchment, transfers or retirement.
- Savings pot withdrawals under the Two-Pot Retirement System.
- Severance and voluntary separation packages.
- Fixed rate directives for commission earners.
- Annuity income and pension payments.
- Foreign employment income where special treatment applies.
What SARS Changed — and Where It Went Wrong
- Inability to request new directives — some practitioners and employers receive system errors when submitting directive applications
- Loss of access to historical directives — previously issued directives are not viewable on the platform, creating problems for audits and reconciliations
- Incorrect directive denials — some applications are being automatically declined even where they meet all legal requirements
- System timeout errors — increased load from Two-Pot related requests is causing timeouts and failed submissions
- Inconsistent results — the same application sometimes succeeds and sometimes fails, pointing to an unstable system state
The Two-Pot Retirement System: A Major Driver of the Problem
To fully understand the current operational pressure on SARS, it is important to consider the introduction of the Two-Pot Retirement System.
Effective 1 September 2024, South Africa fundamentally restructured the way retirement savings are accessed and managed. Under this system, retirement fund contributions are divided into three components, designed to balance long-term preservation of retirement savings with limited access to funds during a member’s lifetime.
A key feature of the reform is the introduction of regulated access to a portion of retirement savings prior to retirement. However, any withdrawal from a member’s savings pot cannot be processed without first obtaining a tax directive from SARS.
Importantly, these withdrawals are treated as ordinary income. The amount withdrawn is added to the individual’s taxable income for the relevant tax year and taxed at their marginal income tax rate. This differs significantly from retirement lump sum withdrawals, which are taxed according to preferential retirement tax tables.
As a result, the system has led to a substantial increase in directive applications, placing additional operational demand on SARS.
When the Two-Pot system launched in September 2024, hundreds of thousands of withdrawal applications were submitted almost simultaneously, requiring an unprecedented volume of directive requests from SARS. The system was tested as never before. Now, with the recent enhancements introducing instability, this high-volume environment makes the current errors even more disruptive.
The 2025/2026 Tax Brackets
The second driver of the update was the need to incorporate above-inflation bracket adjustments from the 2025 Budget Speech. Tax directives must be calculated against current year brackets — so when the tables change, the directive system must be updated. For commission earners, this is precisely why your fixed rate directive needs renewal.
Practical Guidance: What to Do Now
Do not resubmit multiple times — duplicate applications cause additional complications. Contact your fund administrator to confirm status and ask them to escalate with SARS if the application has been pending more than five business days.
If your employer cannot renew your directive, they may default to standard PAYE — meaning higher interim deductions. Any over-deduction will be reconciled at annual return stage. Contact TTT proactively so we can submit and track your renewal.
Document all error messages and submission dates carefully. If issues persist, contact your TTT consultant who can escalate through the formal practitioner channel.
This is not the moment to rush. A short wait ensures your directive is processed correctly. Please call your TTT advisor before submitting any retirement lump sum application.
While these directive system issues are being addressed, it’s also important to look ahead.
Filing season is fast approaching, and preparation is key to avoiding unnecessary delays and last-minute pressure.
At TTT Financial Group, we have already begun preparing for the upcoming tax filing season and will be reaching out to clients to start collecting the necessary supporting documentation.
We encourage clients to keep an eye out for our bulk communications requesting information and to begin submitting their documents as soon as possible. The earlier we receive your information, the sooner we can prepare your return — ensuring everything is ready for submission as soon as SARS officially opens filing season (July 2026).
