SARS backlog report
Behind with SARS and not sure how far? We read every tax type on your profile and give you one page that says exactly which returns SARS lists as outstanding, what you owe, what the penalties are and what is blocking your compliance status. Then a registered tax practitioner quotes the catch up at a fixed price, and you decide.
Independent paperwork service. ProperSA is an independent private company, not SARS. You can pull your own statement of account and compliance status on eFiling at no charge. Our fee pays for reading all of it properly and writing it up in plain English. We are not a registered tax practitioner and we do not file returns; the practitioner we work with does that, at a price you see before you say yes.
What is included
- Your compliance status checked for every tax type on the profile: income tax, provisional tax, VAT, PAYE, UIF and SDL
- Every return SARS lists as outstanding, by tax type and period, with the due date it missed
- Your statement of account for each tax type: what is assessed, what is paid, what is owed, and the administrative penalties and interest running on it
- What is actually blocking a tax compliance PIN, in plain English, in order
- A fixed written quote from the registered tax practitioner we work with to file the backlog and request a payment arrangement if you need one
- The one page report saved in your client portal so you can send it to your accountant, your bank or a tender
Why one page from SARS records beats a free review
Other sites offer a free backlog review. It is a sales call, and you pay for it through the monthly package that follows. Ours costs R490, you keep the report, and the catch up quote is yours to take elsewhere if you want to. We have no monthly package to sell you.
The report is built from what SARS itself holds: the compliance status screen and the statement of account for each tax type. Most people worry about one return and find out on this page that a dormant company has been fined every month for three years, or that a provisional payment was missed in a year they thought was clean. Knowing the full picture before anyone files anything is the whole point.
Where the line is. Section 240 of the Tax Administration Act says a person who completes or assists in completing a return for someone else, for reward, must be registered as a tax practitioner. We are not, so we do not complete or file returns and we do not tell you how to fill one in. We report what SARS records say, and the registered practitioner does the filing under their own practitioner number. See tax returns and who may legally file them.
How ordering works
- Order online and answer the short questionnaire.
- Your registered representative invites us on eFiling using shared access. If nobody is registered as representative, we fix that first.
- We read every tax type and write the report. It lands in your portal within two business days of access, with the practitioner’s fixed quote to catch up.
Not sure this is the right one for you? Ask us first and you get a written answer within one business day.
What we will need from you
Short list, because the work is reading SARS records rather than collecting paperwork.
- The entity name and registration number, or your identity number if you trade in your own name.
- The SARS income tax reference number of the entity or person.
- Shared access on eFiling, granted by invitation from the registered representative. We never ask for a password. If no representative is active, tell us and we start with registered representative setup.
- Which tax types you think you are registered for, even if you are not sure. We check all of them anyway.
- Any SARS letters or SMS messages you have received in the last year, so the report can explain them.
Frequently asked questions
Is this the same as the free tax backlog review other sites offer?
The free version is a sales call. You pay for it later in the monthly package. Ours is a paid one page report that you keep, with every outstanding return, balance and penalty listed from SARS records, and a fixed catch up quote you are free to take elsewhere.
Will you file the outstanding returns?
No. Section 240 of the Tax Administration Act says only a registered tax practitioner may be paid to complete a return for someone else. ProperSA is not one. The registered practitioner we work with quotes the catch up filing with your report in hand, and you decide.
Can you get me a payment arrangement with SARS?
The report shows what is owed and whether SARS lists it as due, and the practitioner handles the deferral or instalment request as part of the catch up. We tell you what a payment arrangement means for your compliance status so you can plan. Our guide to SARS debt explains the options.
How do you see my SARS records?
Your registered representative invites us on eFiling using shared access. Nobody sends us a password. If no representative is active for the entity, that is fixed first with our registered representative setup, because without it nobody can see anything.
How long does it take?
Two business days from the moment we have eFiling access. Most of that is reading every tax type properly rather than only the one you are worried about.
Keep exploring
- Tax clearance PIN, R450
- SARS registered representative setup
- When you cannot pay SARS
- CIPC annual return, the other filing people forget
This page is general information about South African tax administration, not tax advice, and it does not create a professional relationship. ProperSA is not a registered tax practitioner and does not complete or file tax returns for reward. The report states what SARS records show at the date it is written; SARS may reassess, and you remain responsible for what is filed in your name.