1. When will the SARS Annual Employer Reconciliation Submission (EMP501) for the 2021/2022 filing season commence? The 2021/2022 SARS Annual Employer Reconciliation Submission (EMP501) dates can be confirmed on the SARS website by clicking here. The information is located under the Business Requirement Specifications (BRS) and timelines section. 2. When is the deadline to submit my EMP501 reconciliation to SARS? The 2021/2022SARS Annual Employer Reconciliation Submission (EMP501) dates can be confirmed on the SARS website by clicking here. The information is located under the Business Requirement Specifications (BRS) and timelines section. 3. Is it mandatory to submit my SARS Annual Employer Reconciliation Submission (EMP501) ? The reconciliation and submission of the EMP501 return and tax certificates to SARS must take place within the dates announced from year to year as the employer’s filing season. Failure to do so may result in penalties and interest. 4. How can I submit my SARS Annual Employer Reconciliation Submission (EMP501)? These submissions can be made via one of the following channels: - Manual – complete the relevant tax certificates (50 certificates) and return on the specified forms on eFiling, and submit electronically to SARS or visit a SARS Branch for assistance
- Electronic – Generate a tax certificate file from the payroll system and import this file into e@syFile™ Employer. Within e@syFile™ Employer, capture additional manual certificates, cancel certificates, capture EMP501 details, and submit to SARS via the eFiling online channel.
- If the employer has 50 or less IRP5/IT3(a) certificates, tax certificate file can be generated from the payroll system and this file can be imported into eFiling. Any amendments to or cancellation of or capturing of certificates can be done in eFiling if the total number of certificates does not exceed 50.
 NOTE: Sage CSV import files for the 2021/2022 tax year is created according the latest Business Requirements Specification and import files are tested only on e@syFile software. No testing platforms are available on eFiling.
5. What is the version of the Sage software I need to be on to submit my SARS Annual Employer Reconciliation Submission (EMP501) ? To successfully submit your Annual Employer Reconciliation (EMP501) SARS return for the 2020/2021 tax year, the Tax Year-end Copy Instance must be on Release 5.7b. Click here for more details on this update. 6. Where can I find the specifications of the IRP5 submission file? The 2021/2022 Business Requirement Specification is available on the SARS website and can be accessed on the SARS website by clicking here. 7. Where can I find more information on how to complete my declaration? A step by step guide to the Employer Reconciliation Process is available on the SARS website and can be accessed by clicking here. 8. When should I provide my employees with their tax certificates? Once you have submitted your reconciliation and it was accepted successfully by SARS, you can distribute the certificates to your employees.  TIP: We recommend that you keep copies of the tax certificates. Always keep a record that your employees have received their certificates from the Employer.
Related article: How do I upload my employee Tax Certificates to InfoSlips? 9. How long should I be required to keep the documentation for my employees? As per the Tax Administrations Act, the Employer must keep records of remuneration, tax deductible deductions and Income Tax reference numbers of their employees for a period of 5 years from the date of submission of their returns. NOTE: If you have been audited by SARS, you might be instructed to keep records for even longer periods. 10. Where can I find more information regarding the Employment Tax Incentive (ETI) refund process? Details on the refund process is available on the SARS website by clicking here. 11. What can the support desk assist with during the SARS Annual Employer Reconciliation Submission (EMP501) process? Click here to read more information from our Sage Knowledgebase 12. Where can I search for self-help documentation to assist me with the reconciliation and submission process? All documentation to assist you with the reconciliation and submission process can be found on out dedicated Tax Year-end Centre page on Sage City and covers all payroll aspects of the Annual Employer Reconciliation Submission (EMP501). Click here to access the page. 13. How do I make a copy instance for Tax Year-end? Click here to read more information from our Sage Knowledgebase. 14. If there are differences on the EMP501 Reconciliation report, how do I fix the differences ? If there are differences on the EMP501 Reconciliation report you will need to investigate the reasons for the differences before submitting. The following reports can be printed to investigate the differences: 15. If I need assistance with my Interim Reconciliation, what options does Sage offer? You have the following options to assist you: 16. I have generated my EMP501 recon report and I have differences in every month, how is that possible? There are various reasons that might cause this issue: - Transfers of employees between companies with different PAYE numbers
- History Screen changes
- Changes made to company setup or employee records after payroll was closed or finalised
- Recalculations done after payroll closed
Once you have established the cause, changes should be made on declarations or on the payroll, to correct the issue. We highly recommend that you contact your Business Partner for further assistance with the investigation and applying the corrections.
17. What should I do if I receive a Payroll Taxes Validation Failure letter? If any errors are found by SARS, the employer will receive a “Payroll Taxes Validation Failure” letter. The employer will be able to view more detail on the new ETV field in e@syFile once the ‘Download Employment Taxes Validation’ option has been selected (Utilities – EMP501 Status Dashboard – ETV column). Please click on the link to view the information. NOTE: Should you have any Compliance related questions/queries, it should be addressed to SARS or your Tax practitioner |