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Cease tax residency in South Africa: leaving the country does not tell SARS for you

Tips · 2026-10-13 · 10 min read

To cease tax residency in South Africa you have to tell SARS. Leaving the country does not do it for you. You capture the date you ceased to be a tax resident on the RAV01 form on eFiling, or on your ITR12 income tax return, and SARS then sends a letter asking for supporting documents: as standard, a signed declaration, a letter of motivation and a copy of your passport showing entry and exit stamps. Once you have ceased, SARS taxes you only on South African-sourced income, and a deemed disposal for capital gains tax takes place on your worldwide assets, apart from immovable property in South Africa.

This guide sets out what SARS and the South African Reserve Bank (SARB) publish, and nothing more. It is general information, not tax advice. Your own facts decide your position, so confirm it with SARS or a registered tax practitioner before you act.

What "cease to be a tax resident" means

"Cease to be a tax resident" is the official SARS term for leaving the South African tax net when you move abroad. It is a tax status, and it changes what SARS can tax.

Since 1 March 2001, South Africa has taxed individual residents on their worldwide income. A person who has ceased to be a tax resident is taxed only on South African-sourced income. So for as long as you are still a resident on that basis, the pay you earn in Perth or Christchurch counts as part of your worldwide income. Whether South African tax is due on it is a question for SARS or a tax practitioner, not for a blog.

You may know all this as "financial emigration". That was the old Reserve Bank route, and it has gone. The SARB says the concept of emigration recognised by its Financial Surveillance Department was phased out with effect from 1 March 2021, and Form MP 336(b) was withdrawn. The change is now handled through SARS.

How to tell SARS: RAV01 or ITR12

SARS says a change in tax residency must be declared. It makes no difference whether you are leaving for a carpenter job in Cairns or a finance role in Sydney: the declaration is yours to make, and there are two accepted ways to give SARS the date.

1. Settle your date first. The date you ceased drives everything else, the deemed disposal included. Work it out against SARS's page on ceasing to be a tax resident, with a registered tax practitioner if your affairs are not simple.
2. Capture the date on RAV01. That is the Registration, Amendments and Verification form on eFiling. The date of ceasing to be a tax resident goes there.
3. Or put it on your ITR12. Since 21 February 2022, SARS accepts the date either through RAV01 on eFiling or on the ITR12 income tax return. SARS's update on ceasing to be a resident confirms both routes.
4. Watch for the SARS letter. After the date is captured, SARS sends a letter asking for supporting documents.
5. Send what the letter asks for. The standard set is in the checklist below.
6. Keep copies of everything. You will deal with SARS again when you need a Tax Compliance Status to move money.

The documents SARS asks for

SARS lists standard requirements to support ceasing tax residency. Three are expected. One is added if you have it.

Two practical points. First, hold on to the passport you travelled on. SARS wants a copy that shows entry and exit stamps, so those pages are your evidence. Second, the certificate of tax residence does not come from SARS. It comes from the revenue authority of the country you moved to, and SARS asks for it only if it is available.

The 330-day rule, read word by word

The 330-day rule is the part people quote most and read least. SARS's wording is specific: a person who is resident under the physical presence test ceases to be resident when physically outside South Africa for a continuous period of at least 330 full days, from the day he or she left.

• Physical presence test. The rule is written for people who are resident under that test. If you are resident on another basis, do not assume 330 days is your answer. Check SARS's page or ask a registered tax practitioner which one fits you.
• Continuous. The period has to be unbroken. If you plan a trip home in your first year away, ask how it affects the count before you book.
• At least 330 full days, physically outside. It is a minimum, counted in whole days out of the country, not a round year on a contract.

A work visa does not settle any of this. A Skills in Demand (482) visa lets the holder work in Australia for their sponsor for up to 4 years, and New Zealand's Accredited Employer Work Visa allows a stay of up to 5 years depending on the job. Neither one is a message to SARS.

Deemed disposal: look at capital gains tax before you fix a date

SARS says that when an individual ceases to be a tax resident, a deemed disposal for capital gains tax takes place on his or her worldwide assets. One category is left out: immovable property situated in South Africa.

"Deemed" is the word to notice. Nothing has to be sold for the disposal to count for capital gains tax. That is why the date matters, and why you should know what you own, in South Africa and elsewhere, before you capture it.

No amount is given here, because the rule does not turn into a rand figure without your own asset list. Take that list to a registered tax practitioner, or put the question to SARS, before the date goes onto RAV01 or your ITR12.

Moving money and retirement funds after you cease

With the Reserve Bank's emigration process gone, the banking side runs through SARS too. The SARB's Financial Surveillance questions and answers say individuals who cease to be residents must get a Tax Compliance Status in respect of "emigration" from SARS before Authorised Dealers may transfer their funds.

The published limits are these. Authorised Dealers may allow transfers of up to R10 million per calendar year per private individual aged 18 and older who ceases to be a tax resident, if the conditions, including the SARS TCS PIN, are met. In the calendar year you cease, you may also transfer up to R1 million as a travel allowance without a TCS PIN letter. That is a once-off dispensation.

Retirement money runs on its own clock. SARS's tax directive guide, effective 17 April 2026, says members of a retirement annuity fund or preservation fund who have ceased to be resident for an uninterrupted period of three years or longer can withdraw the full benefit before retirement, under rules in force from 1 March 2021. The older route is shut: SARS no longer accepts tax directive applications with the reason "Emigration Withdrawal" submitted on or after 1 September 2024.

The Australian and New Zealand side

If you are leaving Mzansi for work, put SARS on the same list as the visa and the police clearance, then sort out tax where you land. In Australia, temporary visitors with a valid work rights visa can apply for a tax file number (TFN) online through the ATO. It is free and should arrive within 28 days. In New Zealand, an IRD number identifies you for tax, is kept for life and is free to apply for.

Tax is one line in the moving budget. Our breakdown of Australia's visa charges for South African workers covers another, and if a degree has to be verified, the SAQA verification letter has a wait of its own.

Common mistakes South Africans make when ceasing tax residency

• Assuming SARS already knows. SARS says the change must be declared. Boarding a flight or getting a visa is not a declaration.
• Hunting for the old Reserve Bank form. Form MP 336(b) was withdrawn when the SARB's emigration concept was phased out from 1 March 2021.
• Treating 330 days as everyone's rule. It is written for people resident under the physical presence test, and the period must be continuous.
• Capturing a date before looking at capital gains tax. The deemed disposal is tied to ceasing. List your worldwide assets first.
• Counting on a retirement annuity payout on the way out. "Emigration Withdrawal" directives are no longer accepted. The three-year rule applies.

Frequently asked questions

How do I cease tax residency in South Africa?

You declare it to SARS. Capture the date you ceased to be a tax resident on the RAV01 form on eFiling, or on your ITR12 income tax return, which SARS has accepted since 21 February 2022. SARS then sends a letter asking for supporting documents.

Does the 330-day rule apply to everyone who leaves South Africa?

SARS words the rule for a person who is resident under the physical presence test. That person ceases to be resident when physically outside South Africa for a continuous period of at least 330 full days. If you are not sure which basis applies to you, confirm it with SARS or a registered tax practitioner.

What documents does SARS ask for when you cease tax residency?

The standard requirements are a signed declaration, a letter of motivation and a copy of your passport or travel diary showing entry and exit stamps. If one is available, add a certificate of tax residence from the foreign revenue authority.

Is there capital gains tax when I cease to be a South African tax resident?

SARS says a deemed disposal for capital gains tax takes place on your worldwide assets when you cease, excluding immovable property situated in South Africa. What that means in rand depends on what you own, so put the question to SARS or a registered tax practitioner before you fix the date.

Is financial emigration through the Reserve Bank still a requirement?

No. The SARB says the concept of emigration recognised by its Financial Surveillance Department was phased out with effect from 1 March 2021, and Form MP 336(b) was withdrawn. The change is handled through SARS, and you need a Tax Compliance Status from SARS before an Authorised Dealer may transfer your funds.

Key takeaways

• Ceasing tax residency is declared to SARS, on RAV01 on eFiling or on your ITR12. It does not happen because you left.
• SARS follows up with a letter asking for a signed declaration, a letter of motivation and passport pages with entry and exit stamps.
• The 330-day rule covers people resident under the physical presence test: at least 330 full days, continuous, physically outside South Africa.
• Ceasing triggers a deemed disposal for capital gains tax on worldwide assets, excluding immovable property in South Africa. Get advice before you fix the date.
• The Reserve Bank route ended on 1 March 2021. This is general information: confirm your own position with SARS or a registered tax practitioner.

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