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2026 Legal and Policy

Legal & policy - 6 August 2026

Description

SOUTH AFRICAN REVENUE SERVICE (SARS)

  • Draft Taxation Laws Amendment Bill 2026
    • Draft Explanatory Memorandum on the Draft Taxation Laws Amendment Bill 2026
  • Draft Tax Administration Laws Amendment Bill 2026
    • Draft Memorandum on the Objects of the TALAB 2026

Due date for comment: 28 August 2026

  • Tariff heading 3402.90 is subject to detention by PHO.
  • Tariff heading 0406.10 is subject to detention by State Vet, PHO, and the Border Management Authority (BMA).
  • Tariff heading 3202.90 is subject to detention by PHO.
  • Tariff heading 0801.12.10 must be detained for Port Health Officer (PHO) and the Border Management Authority (BMA) Plant Inspection unit. A permit issued by the Directorate: Food Import and Export Standards (DFIES) is also required.
  • 31 July 2026 – South Africa recorded a preliminary trade balance surplus of R17.8 billion in June 2026. This surplus was attributable to exports of R193.6 billion and imports of R175.8 billion, inclusive of trade with Botswana, Eswatini, Lesotho and Namibia (BELN). See the full Media Release here. Or visit the Trade Statistics webpage.
  • Explanatory Memorandum – Elaborates on specific changes included in the amendment of the Schedules to the Customs and Excise Act, 1964.
  • Draft amendment to Part 1 of Schedule No. 1, as a consequence to the amendment in Part 1 of Schedule No. 1
  • Draft amendment to Part 2A of Schedule No. 1, as a consequence to the amendment in Part 1 of Schedule No. 1
  • Draft amendment to Part 5A of Schedule No. 1, as a consequence to the amendment in Part 1 of Schedule No. 1, in order to implement HS 2022
  • Draft amendment to Part 5B of Schedule No. 1, as a consequence to the amendment in Part 1 of Schedule No. 1
  • Draft amendment to Part 1D of Schedule No. 6, to as a consequence to the amendment in Part 1 of Schedule No. 1
  • Draft amendment in Part 1F of Schedule No. 6, to as a consequence to the amendment in Part 1 of Schedule No. 1
  • Correlation table

Due date for comment: 29 August 2026

  • 3 August 2026 – The state provides state warehouses for the safekeeping of goods. These are managed by Customs. The purpose of this list of unentered goods is to notify the importer, exporter and any other person that has interest in the goods that the goods have been taken up into the State warehouse and if they remain unentered they will be disposed in accordance with the provisions of the Customs & Excise Act. See the latest Customs Weekly List of Unentered Goods here.
  • 3 August 2026 – SARS reviews its Service Charter to keep service commitments measurable and relevant to taxpayers’ needs. The review focuses on committed service-level metrics and is informed by data and lessons from monitoring service performance. In support of SARS Strategic Objective 5, “Increase the use of data to improve integrity, derive insight, and improve outcomes”, SARS has assessed areas where performance has consistently exceeded expectations, as well as areas where service levels have been difficult to meet. The reviewed Service Charter is effective from 1 April 2026. Central to this revision is the ethos of SARS at Your Service. As SARS works toward the long-term goal that “the best service is no service, tax just happens”, the organisation remains focused on getting the basics right through high-quality service, professionalism, ethical conduct, technical excellence, strong stakeholder relationships, continuous improvement, and data-driven decision-making. In line with the goal to improve efficiency and effectiveness, selected service metrics have been reviewed across the categories of engagements, registrations, refunds, payments, Complaints Management Office (CMO), and the Office of the Tax Ombud (OTO). Taxpayers’ rights and obligations have also been reviewed as part of SARS’s commitment to creating a safe, fair, and service-oriented environment for all.
  • 4 August 2026 – Customs and Excise Act, 1964: Draft amendments to the following schedules:

· Part 1 of Schedule No. 1, to provide for technical amendments, by the insertion and deletion of various subheadings to provide for technical amendments for statistical purposes

· Part 1 of Schedule No. 3, as a consequence to the amendment in Part 1 of Schedule No. 1

· Part 2 of Schedule No. 4, as a consequence to the amendment in Part 1 Schedule No. 1

· Part 3 of Schedule No. 5, as a consequence to the amendment in Part 1 of Schedule No. 1

Due date for comment: 18 August 2026

  • 4 August 2026 – Customs and Excise Act, 1964

· Draft amendments to rules under sections 77ZH and 120 – Voluntary disclosure relief

Due date for comment: 25 August 2026

  • 5 August 2026 – Customs and Excise Act, 1964: The tariff amendments notice, scheduled for publication in the Government Gazette, relates to the amendments to –

· Part 1 of Schedule No. 1, by the substitution of tariff subheadings 1001.91 and 1001.99 as well as 1101.00.10, 1101.00.20, 1101.00.30 and 1101.00.90, to reduce the rate of customs duty on wheat and wheaten flour from 15.37c/kg and 23.05c/kg, respectively to free of duty, in terms of the existing variable tariff formula (ITAC Minute M05/2026)

Publication details will be made available later

NATIONAL TREASURY (NT)

AFRICAN TAX ADMINISTRATION FORUM (ATAF)

SOUTH AFRICAN RESERVE BANK

SOUTHERN AFRICAN LEGAL INFORMATION INSTITUTE (SAFLII)

DivisionTax
Date6 August 2026