Tax and SARS knowledge base
How to download your SARS statement of account
How do I download my SARS statement of account?
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Direct answer
Log in to eFiling and select the Statement of Account icon to view the Income Tax Statement of Account, or use an official SARS mobile service that offers a statement request. The ITSA shows the overall balance on the tax account and transaction history by tax year.
Use the current statement when checking an account. A statement of account is not the same thing as an ITA34 notice of assessment or proof that a payment has been made.
What this means in practice
The ITSA is useful for checking the account position and transactions recorded for a tax year. It can include applicable penalty and interest in the overall balance. Read the transactions rather than relying on a balance copied from an earlier statement or message.
SARS also offers statement-of-account requests through authorised mobile channels. The route available to you depends on the channel and your authentication. Use only a SARS channel you have opened yourself.
Step-by-step
- Use an official SARS service.
Log in to your eFiling profile and select the Statement of Account icon. If you use a SARS mobile channel instead, choose the statement-of-account service and complete the required authentication.
- Confirm you are viewing the correct taxpayer and period.
Check the taxpayer identity and tax year before downloading or relying on the result. This matters especially where you manage more than one profile or have several years of returns.
- Retrieve the current ITSA.
View or download the statement generated by the service. Save it with a clear name that includes the taxpayer and the date obtained, but do not change the document contents.
- Read the transaction history.
Review the transactions that make up the overall balance. Check returns, payments, penalties or interest entries against your own SARS records before taking any action.
- Keep the statement with related documents.
Save the ITSA with the relevant ITA34, return confirmation and payment proof. This gives you a better record if a later account entry needs to be queried.
Before relying on a current balance, retrieve a fresh statement close to the time of follow-up. Account transactions can change as SARS processes returns, payments or other account events. Keep the statement date with your notes.
Documents and records to keep
- Authorised eFiling or SARS mobile-service access.
- Current downloaded ITSA.
- Related ITA34, return confirmation and payment proof.
- Relevant SARS correspondence.
Important limits and exceptions
The ITSA shows account information. It is not an assessment notice and it is not automatically a receipt. Read the ITA34 when you need the assessment result, and retain payment confirmation when you need proof of a payment.
Do not conclude from the total alone that a refund is certain or that a debt is undisputed. The transaction history and current SARS correspondence can affect how the position should be understood.
The ITSA is an account record, not a substitute for keeping return confirmations and payment records. Those records help identify a difference without relying on memory or an outdated balance alone.
When to get tailored advice
Get help if you cannot reconcile the statement with returns, payments or an assessment, if several tax years are involved, or if there is an active verification, dispute or debt-recovery matter.
TaxProof can help organise the ITSA, assessments and payment records so the account question is clear. SARS determines the account balance and any formal next step.
Related TaxProof guides
- SARS payment arrangement for tax debt
- What does a negative or positive balance on my SARS statement mean? (B02-ADM-006)