How long does a SARS refund take, and why is mine delayed?

If you are due a refund and nothing is holding it up, SARS aims to pay it within 72 hours of the assessment being finalised. The catch is in the conditions: the 72-hour clock only starts once the assessment is complete, your banking details are correct, you have no debt or outstanding returns, the refund is more than R100, and no verification or audit is under way. If any of those is not true, the refund waits.

So a "delayed" refund is usually not lost. It is parked behind one of a short list of checks, and you can work out which one.

When the 72 hours actually start

The 72-hour target is measured from the moment the assessment is completed and assessed, not from when you filed. If your return sails through with no review, the gap between filing and payment can be short. If anything pauses the assessment, the clock has not started yet, which is why the refund can feel stuck while everything looks fine on your side.

The usual reasons it is held

• Selected for verification. If SARS selects your return for verification, it can take up to 21 business days from the date it receives all your supporting documents to conclude. The refund is then paid within 72 hours of that being done. The single biggest lever you control here is uploading complete, correct documents quickly.
• Banking details under verification. If you changed your bank account, SARS verifies it before paying. That check can also take up to 21 business days from the date the required documents are received.
• Outstanding returns or debt. A refund for one year can be held if you have not filed another year, or if you owe SARS. Filing the outstanding return or settling the debt clears the block.
• A refund of R100 or less. Very small refunds are not paid out in the normal way, so a tiny expected amount can look like a non-payment.

A worked example

Refund size follows from the gap between PAYE withheld and tax due. Take someone with taxable income of R420,000 for the 2026 year of assessment. The tax falls in the third bracket (R370,501 to R512,800), so it is R77,362 plus 31% of the amount above R370,500:

• R420,000 less R370,500 = R49,500
• 31% of R49,500 = R15,345
• R77,362 + R15,345 = R92,707
• Less the primary rebate of R17,235 = R75,472 tax for the year

If R98,000 of PAYE was withheld over the year, the refund is R98,000 less R75,472 = R22,528. That is well above R100, so once the assessment is final and no verification is open, SARS should pay it within 72 hours into a verified account.

What to do if it is stuck

1. Check your assessment status on eFiling. It tells you whether the return is assessed, under verification, or selected for audit. That alone usually explains the wait.
2. Confirm your banking details. A wrong or unverified account is the most common practical blocker. Fix it and supply the documents SARS asks for.
3. Clear outstanding returns and debt. File any missing year and settle or arrange any amount owing, because either can hold the refund.
4. Respond to document requests fast. The 21-business-day verification window runs from when SARS has everything, so the sooner you upload complete documents, the sooner the 72-hour clock can start.

See what your refund should be

Knowing the size of the refund you are owed makes a delay easier to chase. Our Basic income tax and PAYE calculator compares your tax due on the 2026 table against the PAYE withheld and shows the refund or amount owing, line by line. Our guide on whether you need to submit a return helps you clear any outstanding-return blocker, and our explainers on reading your ITA34 and SARS auto-assessments cover the assessment that the refund flows from.

SARS sources:

• https://www.sars.gov.za/faq/what-could-delay-my-refund-from-being-paid-to-me/
• https://www.sars.gov.za/faq/if-im-getting-a-refund-when-does-the-72-hours-start/
• https://www.sars.gov.za/individuals/what-if-i-do-not-agree/being-audited-or-selected-for-verification/
• https://www.sars.gov.za/tax-rates/income-tax/rates-of-tax-for-individuals/