South Africa’s revenue service is stepping up efforts to recover unpaid taxes, with taxpayers facing tougher enforcement measures that can include money being taken directly from their bank accounts.
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The South African Revenue Service’s undisputed debt collection pool reached R532 billion in July 2026, up from R407.9 billion in March 2025, according to data cited by Jashwin Baijoo, partner and head of strategic engagement and compliance at Tax Consulting South Africa.
Baijoo said the increase of R124 billion reflects a growing pool of unpaid tax, including large outstanding liabilities and administrative penalties owed by non compliant taxpayers.
“SARS no longer send Letters of Demand and then forgets about the taxpayers for months or years,” Baijoo said.
