SARS is coming after these taxpayers hard in 2026
The South African Revenue Service (SARS) is gearing up to turn the screws on crypto asset traders using “International Tax Standards”, with local regulatory changes set to come into effect from March 2026.
This will be done through the Crypto-Asset Reporting Framework (CARF) and revised Common Reporting Standard (CRS) regulations.
These draft regulations, which are proposed to become effective on 1 March 2026, will increase the regulatory and reporting burden on crypto service providers and taxpayers in South Africa.
According to tax experts at Tax Consulting SA, SARS hopes to uncover global crypto assets and activities by strengthening tax treatment and building on the automatic exchange of information across various services.
“As the cryptocurrency market rapidly expands and the global financial landscape evolves, tax authorities worldwide are intensifying their efforts to maintain transparency and combat tax evasion,” the group said.
“South Africa’s release of draft regulations for the CARF and updated CRS represents a significant advancement in compliance with international standards.”
These proposed regulations, published in September 2025, aim to foster the automatic exchange of tax-related information concerning both traditional financial assets and emerging crypto-asset classes.
The CARF regulations are instrumental in South Africa’s commitment to meet international tax standards, while also allowing SARS to pursue tax collection from the 5.8 million South African taxpayers engaging in crypto-related activities.
Approved by the OECD’s Committee on Fiscal Affairs during 2022 and 2023, CARF tackles the unprecedented growth of the use of crypto-assets on a global basis, and the associated tax implications.
The framework seeks to mitigate the erosion of tax transparency by mandating the automatic exchange of data linked to crypto assets across jurisdictions.
The key components of CARF are identifying which crypto assets are subject to reporting requirements, and also identifying the entities and individuals who are subject to data collection for reporting.
The framework aims to make crypro trading more transparent, and to also set very clear guidelines on how these assets should be reported to tax authorities.
Nowhere to hide
The revised CRS regulations, meanwhile, will make it so there is “nowhere to hide” for non-compliant taxpayers, Tax Consulting said.
The changes will bring even more financial instruments and players under its scope, ensuring that SARS’s net of data and shared information is cast even wider.
“The revised CRS is aimed at bringing new financial products, intermediaries and financial assets into its scope. This includes certain electronic money products and Central Bank Digital Currencies,” the group said.
Tax Consulting said that the investigation into South African taxpayers’ offshore interests has long been on the cards with SARS, with foreign asset/income disclosure notices being issued as far back as 2020, entailing a blanket disclosure of offshore assets.
“The knock-on effect of this is the promotion of the automatic exchange of information, imposing a legal reporting obligation on the respective revenue authorities,” it said.
“At the time, many taxpayers may have thought best to hide the revenue authority’s request under their mattresses, but now, there appears to be no escape for the non-compliant South African taxpayer.”
Tax Consulting warned that the draft regulations and changes in SARS’ approach show that the revenue service is not holding back and is determined to chase after non-compliant taxpayers wherever they try to hide.
It added that the taxman has become increasingly competent since its nadir in the Zuma-era, and is “steadily aligning itself with international standards and climbing back to its former prestige as one of the world’s finest”.
The group said that taxpayers involved in crypto transactions or holding digital assets should anticipate increased scrutiny and enhanced information sharing among tax authorities as the regulations kick into effect.
Loading ...