SA Wages Pro

Interim vs Final Reconciliation

3 min read — Updated September 2026

Two Reconciliations, Not One

A reconciliation is where SARS checks that the monthly EMP201s you filed add up to the certificates you issued. SARS runs this twice in every tax year, and the two are not interchangeable:

  • Interim - covers 1 March to 31 August only, so the first six months. Filed in September/October.
  • Final - covers the whole tax year, 1 March to the end of February. Filed in April/May.

They Declare Different Payslips

This is the part that catches people out. The interim reconciliation declares only March to August payslips. The final one declares all twelve months, including those same six months again.

The final reconciliation is not a top-up of the interim - it restates the whole year. So the two carry different totals and a different period code, and submitting the wrong one gives SARS a file it will not accept for that period.

Filing an interim certificate set when SARS is expecting the final one (or the other way round) is one of the most common reconciliation errors. Check the selector before you download.

Choosing in SA Wages Pro

On the IRP5 / IT3(a) form you will see a panel headed "Which reconciliation are you submitting?" with two buttons. Each button shows what it covers and the period code that will be written to the file.

SA Wages Pro pre-selects whichever one is in season - interim during September and October, final the rest of the year - but you can change it. Underneath, the heading tells you the exact dates being declared, so you can confirm before downloading.

If you took on your first employee in November, your interim reconciliation will be empty and that is correct - there were no March-to-August payslips to declare.

How Tax Years Are Named

The South African tax year runs from 1 March to the end of February, and it is named after the calendar year in which it ends. The 2026/2027 tax year means 1 March 2026 to 28 February 2027. Its interim reconciliation covers March to August 2026; its final one covers the full stretch to February 2027.

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