Penalties are being implemented for the non-submission of Income Tax Returns by Trusts

2 April 2026 – On 27 March 2026, a public notice was issued listing the non-submission of income tax returns by Trusts as an incidence of non-compliance subject to an administrative non-compliance penalty under section 211 of the Tax Administration Act, 2011 (TAA). Administrative penalties may be imposed on taxpayers who fail to comply with an obligation under a tax Act. The penalties are designed to encourage compliance, applied consistently, and may recur monthly until corrected.

From 4 May 2026 SARS will issue a penalty assessment notice (AP34) to notify taxpayers of administrative non-compliance penalties that have been imposed for non-compliance with regard to outstanding trust income tax returns. The penalty assessment notice will reflect imposed penalties, outstanding income tax returns for which tax periods, and corrective measure to be followed to prevent recurring penalties. Taxpayers are also advised to submit a request for remission if they do not agree with the penalty imposition. This penalty will apply to trusts with outstanding income tax returns (ITR12T) for tax periods from 2024 onwards. For more information, see the updated Guide to submit a dispute via eFiling.

Kindly note that the previous Guide called ‘How to dispute Administrative Penalties via eFiling’ has been incorporated into the above guide.

Also see our step-by step video on How to file a Request for Remission for Trust on eFiling.