The significant changes to the 2026 EMP501 submission (covering the tax year 1 March 2025 to 28 February 2026) are primarily driven by SARS’s effort to strengthen data integrity, enforce compliance through mandatory tax numbers, and modernize the tax system. The 2026 filing season, running from 1 April to 31 May 2026, marks the end of leniency periods for missing employee information.

Here are the key reasons and changes for the 2026 EMP501 submission:

1. Mandatory Income Tax Numbers (The Biggest Shift)

From February 2026, SARS will strictly enforce the inclusion of valid Income Tax Reference Numbers (TRNs) for all employees, without exception. Rejection of Submissions: Submissions missing even one valid employee tax number will be rejected by the e@syFile™

Employer system, preventing the generation of IRP5/IT3(a) certificates.

End of Grace Period: While 2025 interim submissions allowed missing numbers (triggering only warnings), the 2026 annual reconciliation mandates them.

2. New Validation Rules and Technical Changes

SARS has updated the Business Requirement Specifications (BRS) for PAYE Employer Reconciliation to version 24.0.2, applying to the 2026 tax year.

Preventing Duplicate Registrations: New fields added to the ITREG (Income Tax Registration) process to prevent duplicate employee registrations.

Standardized CSV Layouts: Validation rules for CSV files have been re-instated and standardized to ensure consistency across submission years.

Source Code Changes: New codes added for travel reimbursement (3623/3723), as well as 4042, 4588, and 4589.

Employer Data Split: Employer demographics no longer form part of the employee certificate; the "Certificate Number" now contains the PAYE reference number, directly linking employer info to the employee.

3. Alignment with 2026 Budget Speech

The submission must reflect changes announced in the 2026 budget, including
adjustments for:

Long service awards and death benefits.

Updated National Minimum Wage: Increased to R30.23 per hour from 1 March 2026.

ETI Updates: Minimum wage codes for the Employment Tax Incentive (ETI) must be
updated for March 2026.

4. Supporting Auto-Assessments

The changes aim to improve the quality of third-party data, allowing SARS to:

Generate accurate Auto-Assessments for individuals.

Pre-populate Income Tax Returns (ITR12) more efficiently.

5. Increased Enforcement and Penalties

Higher Compliance Stakes: Poor-quality data disrupts SARS’s automated processes, leading to tighter controls on employer
submissions.

Penalties: Late submission or inaccurate submissions can lead to penalties of
1% of the total annual PAYE liability, increasing monthly up to 10%.