1st Provisional Tax Deadline for 2026 – August 2025
We draw your attention to the 1st provisional tax deadline (IRP6) for 2026 on 31 August 2025 for all individuals as well as non-individuals (companies, trusts, etc.) with a February financial year-end.
What is Provisional Tax?
Provisional tax allows corporate and individual provisional taxpayers to pay their annual income tax in advance by making two or three payments during a tax year.
The aim is to prevent taxpayers from facing large income tax liabilities that are only revealed at the end of the year of assessment, when the annual personal income tax (PIT) return ITR12 or the annual corporate income tax (CIT) return ITR14 is filed in January.
While provisional tax payments can assist taxpayers by spreading their income tax liability over the tax year, they also create additional administrative obligations such as completing and submitting a provisional tax return (IRP6) on time, twice or thrice a year. What’s more, they increase the risk of penalties, most notably under-estimation penalties.
Luckily you have us in your corner.
What Period is Covered?
The above deadline represents the FIRST provisional tax return for the tax year ending 28 February 2026 and covers the period 1 March 2025 to 31 August 2025.
Are You a Provisional Taxpayer? / Who Must Submit Now?
The following taxpayers must submit their FIRST provisional tax return for 2026 (and any related payment) by the end of August:
- All companies and non-individual taxpayers with a February year-end whether they had profits or not and whether they traded or not. All companies are automatically provisional taxpayers and need to file IRP6s, even if dormant and not trading.
- All individuals who have not paid sufficient tax to SARS during the year through PAYE or in any other way.
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- If you earn income where you do not pay PAYE and it exceeds R30,00.00 for the tax year, you fall under the provisional taxpayer requirements.
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Understanding Provisional Taxpayers
To understand more about provisional tax and who qualifies as a provisional taxpayer, please refer to the SARS website here.
Understanding Year-Ends
The deadlines for submission of provisional tax returns (and any related payment) depends upon the year-end of the taxpayer:
- Individuals automatically have a February year-end and individual provisional taxpayers therefore have to submit a provisional return (and any related payment) before the end of August (first period) and end of February (second period) each year.
- Non-individuals which do not have a February year-end must submit provisional tax returns (and any related payment) six months into the financial year (first period) and then again before the year-end date (second period).
Understanding the Deadlines
| February Year-End | |||
| Due Date | Period | Year of Assessment | Requirement |
| 31/08/2024 | File 6 months from start of financial year | 2025 | 1st provisional tax return & payment (IRP6) |
| 28/02/2025 | File last working day of the financial year | 2025 | 2nd provisional tax return & payment (IRP6) |
| 28/02/2025 | File before the end of the next financial year-end | 2024 | Income Tax Return (IT14) |
| 31/08/2025 | File 6 months from start of financial year | 2026 | 1st provisional tax return & payment (IRP6) |
| 30/09/2025 | Last business day of September | 2025 | 3rd and voluntary provisional tax payment (IRP6) |
| 28/02/2026 | File last working day of the financial year | 2026 | 2nd provisional tax return & payment (IRP6) |
| 28/02/2026 | File before the end of the next financial year-end | 2025 | Income Tax Return (IT14) |
| 31/08/2026 | File 6 months from start of financial year | 2027 | 1st provisional tax return & payment (IRP6) |
| 30/09/2026 | Last business day of September | 2026 | 3rd and voluntary provisional tax payment (IRP6) |
| 28/02/2027 | File last working day of the financial year | 2027 | 2nd provisional tax return & payment (IRP6) |
| 28/02/2027 | File before the end of the next financial year-end | 2026 | Income Tax Return (IT14) |
What About Registration?
No separate registration with SARS is required as it is income tax, i.e. if provisional tax is due, simply activate the tax type for Provisional Tax on eFiling and submit the return (and any related payment). While non-individuals e.g. companies are always considered provisional taxpayers, it is possible that an individual may be a provisional taxpayer one year and not the following year and vice versa.
Need Assistance?
Our team at The Tax Shop Alberton is here to assist you with the preparation and submission of your provisional tax return.
If you require any assistance, want to enquire about pricing or have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact us on 064 459 3875 or luke.victor@taxshop.co.za / dave.victor@taxshop.co.za.
Contact us if you are not sure if you are a provisional taxpayer or if you require assistance with the returns to SARS.
Disclaimer:The information provided herein should not be used or relied on as professional advice. No liability can be accepted for any errors or omissions nor for any loss or damage arising from reliance upon any information herein. Always contact us for specific and detailed advice.
Luke Victor
BA(SA), ICB Financial Accountant
The Tax Shop Alberton
More about Luke Victor
Luke obtained a Diploma as a Financial Accountant with ICB and is a registered member of SAIBA with experience in bookkeeping, debtors, creditors, VAT, payroll, PAYE, UIF, financials, taxation, Workman’s Comp and company secretarial.
Luke has been managing and running The Tax Shop Alberton for 3 years. With his help, we have reached our yearly targets from our head office for the last 2 years. He also has experience working in IT and Software Testing and Training.
Xero & QuickBooks Certified