How long must you keep receipts & records for SARS?

The five-year rule

Under the Tax Administration Act, SARS requires you to keep the records that support your tax returns for five years from the date the return is submitted. That applies to income tax, VAT and other taxes. The clock starts at submission, not at the end of the tax year — so a return you filed late is held against the date you actually filed it.

Two situations extend that period:

• Late returns. If you submitted a return after its due date, the five years runs from the later submission date.
• Audits, objections and disputes. If SARS has begun an audit or investigation, or you've lodged an objection or appeal, you must keep the relevant records until the matter is fully concluded — even if that pushes you past the five years.

Because of this, many businesses simply keep everything indefinitely once it's digital — there's no cost to holding a PDF, and it removes any risk of binning something you later need.

What counts as a record?

A "record" is anything that supports a figure on your returns. For a typical small business that means:

• Receipts and tax invoices for the expenses you claimed;
• Invoices you issued to customers;
• Bank statements and proof of payments;
• Contracts and agreements;
• Asset records for anything you're depreciating;
• Payroll and employee records.

If it backs up income you declared or a deduction you took, keep it. (Other laws, like the Companies Act, set their own retention periods for company documents — often longer — so check those separately if they apply to you.)

Are digital and photographed receipts allowed?

Yes. SARS accepts records kept in electronic form, as long as they're a true and legible reproduction of the original and you can access and produce them on request. A sharp photo or a PDF of a till slip is fine — you don't have to keep the curling paper original.

This matters because thermal till-slip ink fades. A receipt that's perfectly readable today can be a blank grey rectangle in eighteen months. Capturing a digital copy the moment you get it isn't just convenient — for fading slips, it's the only way the record survives the five years you're required to keep it.

How to store records so an audit is a non-event

A good system has three properties: complete (nothing missing), legible (every copy clear), and retrievable (you can find any single document in seconds). A folder of loose photos on a phone fails the third test. A structured, searchable, backed-up store passes all three.

This guide is general information, not tax or legal advice. Retention rules can change and other laws may apply to your business — confirm the current requirements with SARS or a registered tax practitioner.