Year-end IRP5, IT3(a) and the EMP501 reconciliation
What a South African employer needs for IRP5 and IT3(a) certificates and the EMP501 reconciliation, what Achekam prepares, and what a person still files.
By Achekam · · 4 min read · For Running a business businesses in South Africa
Each year, South African employers have to prove that the monthly payroll figures add up. What was deducted from employees, what was declared on each EMP201, what was paid to SARS and what appears on each employee's tax certificate must all agree. When they do not, SARS asks why, and employees wait for certificates they need for their own tax returns.
This reconciliation is called the EMP501, and the certificates are the IRP5 and the IT3(a). This article explains what each one is, what Achekam prepares from your payroll, and the parts that stay with a person.
The tax year and the certificates
A South African tax year runs from 1 March to the last day of February and is named for the year in which it ends. The 2026 tax year ran from 1 March 2025 to 28 February 2026. The 2027 tax year started on 1 March 2026.
Every certificate and every reconciliation belongs to one tax year. SARS publishes the dates by which reconciliations and certificates are due; check its current dates each year rather than relying on last year's.
IRP5 or IT3(a): which an employee gets
Each employee paid during the year gets one certificate for their employment with you. Which one depends on whether tax was deducted:
- An IRP5 is issued where tax was deducted.
- An IT3(a) is issued where it was not.
Picture a part-time assistant whose pay stayed below the level at which PAYE starts all year. No tax was deducted, so they receive an IT3(a). A full-time manager from whom PAYE was withheld every month receives an IRP5. Both certificates still show what the person earned; the difference is whether tax was withheld.
In Achekam, year-end IRP5 and IT3(a) certificates are prepared from issued payslips and download as PDFs.
Missing ID or tax numbers stop a certificate being issued
A certificate cannot be issued while an employee's ID number or income tax number is missing. Achekam will still produce it for checking, so you can see what it will say, but it will not issue it. A certificate is numbered and frozen only when SARS's required details are present.
This is the most common cause of year-end delay, and it is easy to fix early. Months before the year ends, run through your employee list and look for:
- employees with no income tax reference number;
- ID numbers missing or typed with a digit wrong;
- people who left during the year and whose details were never finished.
Chasing a former employee for a tax number in the week the reconciliation is due is much harder than asking a current one in October.
The month-by-month EMP501 reconciliation
The EMP501 reconciliation in Achekam shows, month by month, four figures that should agree:
| Figure | Where it comes from |
|---|---|
| Deducted | What the month's approved pay runs deducted |
| Declared | What the month's EMP201 declared to SARS |
| Paid | What was paid to SARS for the month |
| On certificates | What the employees' certificates show for the month |
A difference in any month points to a specific problem: a declaration that did not match the run, a payment recorded for the wrong amount, or a certificate that left something out. Fix it in the month it belongs to, with your accountant if it affects a filed declaration. SARS's overview of completing and submitting employer declarations explains how the EMP501 matches PAYE, SDL, UIF and ETI to the IRP5 and IT3(a) certificates issued for the year.
The e@syFile Employer import file
SARS's e@syFile Employer software is where the EMP501 is completed and submitted. Achekam reconciles PAYE month by month and produces the certificate file that e@syFile Employer imports, so the certificate data does not have to be typed in again.
Achekam refuses to produce that file while anything remains that SARS would reject. That can feel strict when a deadline is close, but a file SARS would reject is worse than no file: it costs a submission and still has to be fixed.
You then complete and submit the EMP501 in SARS's own software.
Getting certificates to employees
Once a certificate is issued, the employee needs it for their own tax return. Achekam's self-service shows South African IRP5 and IT3(a) certificates, so a staff member whose login is linked to their payroll record can download their own certificate alongside their payslips.
Not everyone will have a login. For staff without one, and for people who left during the year, download the PDF and send it to them yourself, and note when it went. Former employees often change e-mail addresses, so check the address you hold before you send a document that carries their tax number.
Who submits, and recording what was filed
Achekam prepares the IRP5s, IT3(a)s and the e@syFile import file, but it submits nothing to SARS and pays nothing to SARS. A person files, and records in Achekam the reference SARS gave.
Keep a simple year-end record with:
- the date the EMP501 was submitted and SARS's reference;
- the number of certificates issued, split into IRP5s and IT3(a)s;
- any certificate produced for checking but not issued, and why;
- any difference left in the reconciliation, and who agreed it.
The reconciliation is only as good as the monthly declarations behind it; see the monthly EMP201 and the Employment Tax Incentive. The new tax year also needs its own table before payday, as explained in confirming the 2026/27 tax table before payday. And for the other return SARS expects from many employers, read preparing your VAT201 when your books are in Achekam.
This month, run the employee list for missing ID and tax numbers. It is the single step that most often decides whether year end takes an afternoon or a fortnight.
General guidance only, not advice on your own circumstances. Tax and payroll rules change: check the current position with the authority or your adviser.
