PAYE Calculator (South Africa)
Work out your salary, UIF and take-home pay for the 2026/2027 SARS tax year.
Punch in your monthly or annual salary. This PAYE and UIF calculator works out the income tax coming off your payslip, the UIF contribution, and the take-home pay that lands in your bank account. Add your pension or provident fund contribution and it takes the deduction the way your employer does; add a bonus and it shows the tax on that month too. It runs on the SARS tax tables for the 2026/2027 tax year (1 March 2026 to 28 February 2027), with the 2025/2026 tables a click away for an older payslip.
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SARS tax tables 2026/2027
Rates of tax for individuals for the year 1 March 2026 to 28 February 2027, from the February 2026 Budget. Each rate applies only to the slice of income inside its band, so earning R1 more than a threshold does not change the tax on everything below it.
| Taxable income | Rate of tax |
|---|---|
| R0 to R245 100 | 18% of taxable income |
| R245 101 to R383 100 | R44 118 + 26% of the amount above R245 100 |
| R383 101 to R530 200 | R79 998 + 31% of the amount above R383 100 |
| R530 201 to R695 800 | R125 599 + 36% of the amount above R530 200 |
| R695 801 to R887 000 | R185 215 + 39% of the amount above R695 800 |
| R887 001 to R1 878 600 | R259 783 + 41% of the amount above R887 000 |
| Above R1 878 600 | R666 339 + 45% of the amount above R1 878 600 |
Rebates, thresholds and credits
| Primary rebate (everyone) | R17 820 |
| Secondary rebate (65 and older, added) | R9 765 |
| Tertiary rebate (75 and older, added) | R3 249 |
| Tax threshold, under 65 | R99 000 a year. Below this, no PAYE. |
| Medical scheme credit, a month | R376 each for the first two members, R254 for each further dependant |
| Retirement deduction cap | 27.5% of pay, up to R430 000 a year |
| UIF ceiling | 1% of pay up to R17 712 a month, so at most R177,12 |
A worked example: R30 000 a month with a pension fund
Take someone aged 35 earning R30 000 a month who pays 7.5% (R2 250) into the company pension fund. Over the year that is R360 000 of pay and R27 000 of contributions, all of it deductible because it sits well under 27.5% of pay.
- Taxable income: R360 000 less R27 000 = R333 000.
- Tax from the table: R66 972 before the rebate.
- Less the primary rebate of R17 820 = R49 152 of PAYE for the year, or R4 096 a month.
- UIF: 1% of the salary, capped at the ceiling, so R177 a month.
- Take-home: R30 000 less R4 096 less R177 less the R2 250 pension contribution = R23 477 in the bank.
The marginal rate is 26%, so every extra R100 of salary loses R26 to tax, and every extra R100 into the pension fund saves the same. The effective rate, tax as a share of the whole salary, is 13.65%. The calculator shows the pension deduction on the annual breakdown but not on the monthly take-home, because the contribution is your money going into your fund rather than tax.
How PAYE is calculated in South Africa
- Your employer annualises the month’s pay, runs it through the table above, takes off the rebate and any medical credit, and withholds one twelfth. That is why a raise in October changes only the months after it.
- Pension, provident and retirement annuity contributions are pooled and deducted before tax, up to 27.5% of your pay and R430 000 a year. A payslip deduction is applied by the employer straight away; a private RA is usually claimed on the return.
- Members of a registered medical scheme get a fixed monthly credit per member, taken off the tax rather than the income.
- UIF takes another 1% off your salary up to a monthly cap of R17 712. The UIF calculator shows what it would pay you back.
- A travel allowance is treated as 80% taxable by default, dropping to 20% if you can show that more than 80% of your driving is for business.
PAYE is worked out one payslip at a time, so the year can end with SARS owing you money or the other way round: after two jobs at once, a part year, an RA paid by debit order or big medical bills. The tax refund calculator works out which from your IRP5.
Common questions
What is PAYE in South Africa?
What's the difference between gross and net salary?
How is a bonus taxed?
Do pension fund contributions reduce PAYE?
What is the South African tax year?
How does this differ from a SARS PAYE calculator?
More free tools
- Tax refund calculatorEstimate your SARS refund or amount owed from your IRP5, RA and medical costs.
- UIF calculatorYour UIF payout for unemployment or maternity leave, and the monthly contribution.
- Payslip generatorPayslip PDF with PAYE and UIF worked out on the current SARS tables. No signup.
- Company tax calculatorThe tax on your profit at 27%, on the SBC scale or as turnover tax.
This calculator is a guide. For tax returns or anything that needs to be exact, check with SARS or speak to a registered tax practitioner. Tables verified 21 September 2026 against the SARS rates of tax for individuals.