A reminder that the tax season deadlines have been brought forward by a month this year so your efiling returns are due by 31 October – it’s  Halloween!

This is what you need to know

If you earn above R350 000 a year you will need to submit a tax return.

If you earn under R350 000 from only one employer for the whole tax year and you don’t have any deductions that you want to claim, then you don’t need to file a tax return.

If, however, you earned less than R350 000 but received allowances like a travel allowance or fringe benefits, you will need to submit a tax return. And if you qualify for a deduction such as medical expenses or retirement fund contributions, then it is in your best interests to submit a tax return and get your refund.

If you do need to submit a return, get all your supporting documents together. This may include an IRP5 or IT3(a), which report all employment and annuity income as well as lump-sum payments from retirement funds. An IRP5 is issued when tax was deducted and an IT3(a) when tax was not deducted.

Other certificates you may get are an IT3(b), which reports interest and dividends for local and offshore investments, and an IT3(c), which lists capital gains and losses for local and offshore investments.

If you made a contribution during the tax year to a retirement annuity you will receive a retirement annuity fund contribution certificate.

If you have a tax-free investment you should also receive an IT3(s), which gives details of all contributions, withdrawals and returns earned on your tax-free investment ‒ SARS needs to check that you are sticking to your annual and lifetime contribution limits.

In most cases, your investment firm will send you these certificates before the tax season begins, but if they have not, you’d better contact them soon.

This article first appeared in City Press.