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My employer has not submitted my IRP5 to SARS: what should I do?
What should I do if my employer has not submitted my IRP5 to SARS?
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Direct answer
Ask your employer, or former employer, to submit a correct and complete EMP501 reconciliation with the related IRP5/IT3(a) certificate to SARS. You cannot edit employer certificate information on your ITR12 yourself. Once the employer has acted, review the information that appears on your return and submit only a return you can truthfully declare to be correct.
An IRP5 is an employee tax certificate. SARS uses employer-submitted certificate information to prepopulate an ITR12, so a missing or incomplete certificate can leave the return or auto-assessment incomplete.
What this means in practice
Check both whether your employer gave you an IRP5/IT3(a) and whether SARS received it. A payroll duplicate helps check your figures but does not prove SARS has received the certificate.
If SARS has not received one or more IRP5s, the SARS Online Query System guidance tells the taxpayer to ask the employer to submit the correct and complete EMP501 reconciliation with the related IRP5s. This is an employer action. SARS's employer-reconciliation guide also says that IRP5/IT3(a) information is not editable in an ITR12.
You still have a responsibility when you sign your return. Check your income against your IRP5 and other records, check deductions that apply to you, and retain supporting documents. A missing employer certificate does not make employment income disappear. Do not try to solve the problem by leaving salary out of a return.
Step-by-step
- Check whether the certificate is actually missing.
Look at your eFiling return or SARS Online Query System result, if you have one. Compare it with the IRP5/IT3(a) supplied by your employer. If you did not receive a certificate, ask payroll or HR for a duplicate. SARS's employee-tax-certificate guide says an employer may issue a duplicate from its electronic record to an employee or former employee on request.
- Gather your payroll evidence.
Collect payslips for the period, your final payslip if you left the job, your employment contract or remuneration schedule, and proof of PAYE deducted. Also collect your medical scheme tax certificate and retirement contribution records if they are relevant to the return. These documents help you tell the employer precisely what period and amounts are missing.
- Ask the employer to submit the missing data to SARS.
Send a written request to the employer's payroll or HR team. State your full name, employee number if known, tax reference number if available, the tax year, and that SARS does not show the relevant IRP5/IT3(a). Ask the employer to submit the correct and complete EMP501 reconciliation with the related certificate to SARS, and to send you a copy of the certificate. Keep a copy of the request and any reply.
- Check your return again after the employer confirms action.
Re-open the ITR12 after the employer has confirmed its submission. Check that employment income, PAYE and other relevant information agree with your records. The employer certificate fields are locked, so do not attempt to manually substitute the missing amounts in those fields.
- File a complete and accurate return.
Confirm all information before signing and submitting. If the filing deadline is close, the employer does not respond, or you are unsure how to deal with the missing data, seek SARS guidance or tailored tax advice. Do not omit remuneration merely because the employer has not completed its part of the process.
Documents and records to keep
- The IRP5/IT3(a), if you have received one, or written confirmation that it has not been issued.
- Payslips, final payroll records, your employment contract and any remuneration schedule.
- Proof of PAYE withheld, where available.
- Your written request to the employer, replies from payroll or HR, and any confirmation that a corrected or missing certificate was submitted.
- A screenshot or saved result from eFiling or SOQS that shows the missing or incomplete certificate, if available.
- Medical scheme and retirement contribution records that need to be reconciled with your return.
Important limits and exceptions
This process is about employer certificate data. It does not decide whether you must file an ITR12, whether other income must be declared, or whether a refund will be due.
The SARS Online Query System message about missing IRP5s appears in an Auto Assessment context. You may not be selected for auto-assessment for other reasons, for example because you have additional income or expenses to declare. Check your full position rather than assuming that a missing IRP5 is the only issue.
Do not assume that a certificate will appear in eFiling immediately after an employer says it has acted. Check the return again and keep your supporting records. If the certificate is present but contains the wrong salary, PAYE or medical-aid information, use the separate guide on correcting an inaccurate IRP5 rather than treating it as a missing-certificate case.
When to get tailored advice
Get tailored tax advice if your employer will not respond or refuses to correct the information, if you have a disputed salary or bonus amount, or if your case involves a tax directive, severance payment, share remuneration or several employers.
Related TaxProof guides
- IRP5 certificates and EMP501 reconciliations
- Submitting an individual tax return
- Related next guide: Correcting an IRP5 with the wrong salary, PAYE or medical-aid amount.