Business compliance guides
What each SARS, CIPC and Compensation Fund requirement means, when it is due and how to do it yourself, with links to the official sources.
COIDA & tender compliance
Return of Earnings, Letters of Good Standing and the documents tenders ask for.
- COIDA Return of Earnings (ROE): who files, when, and what happens if you are lateWhat the COIDA Return of Earnings is, who must file it, the ROE season on CF Online, late penalties and how it links to your Letter of Good Standing.
- COIDA payment not showing on CF Online: why it happens and how to get it allocatedPaid your COIDA assessment but it is not showing on CF Online? Check the reference, bank account and proof of payment, then ask the Fund to allocate it.
- How to dispute or object to a COIDA assessmentHow to dispute a Compensation Fund assessment that is estimated, uses the wrong earnings or the wrong class of business, and which documents to send.
- COIDA Letter of Good Standing expired: how validity works and how to get a new oneCOIDA Letter of Good Standing expired? How long a LOGS is valid, how to get a new one, and what blocks it, such as unfiled ROEs or unpaid assessments.
- How to verify a COIDA Letter of Good Standing and spot a fakeHow to check a COIDA Letter of Good Standing is genuine and current on the Compensation Fund's Verify LOGS page, and the warning signs of a fake letter.
- Tender compliance checklist: the documents government and municipal tenders ask forThe documents SA government and municipal tenders usually need: SARS TCS PIN, CSD registration, COIDA letter, B-BBEE affidavit, CIPC and CIDB grading.
Closing or reviving a company
Deregistration, liquidation, business rescue and CIPC annual returns.
- Voluntary deregistration of a company or close corporation with CIPCHow voluntary CIPC deregistration works for a company or CC: who qualifies, the online application, the objection period, SARS and reinstatement risk.
- How to close a company in South Africa: deregistration, liquidation or business rescueCompare CIPC deregistration, solvent and creditors' voluntary liquidation and business rescue: when each fits, who decides, steps and risks to directors.
- Missed CIPC annual returns: how deregistration happens and how to reinstateWhy missing CIPC annual returns and BO declarations lead to final deregistration, how to check your company status, and how online reinstatement works.
Payroll forms
EMP201, EMP501, IRP5 and UI-19: what each form is and when it is due.
- The EMP201 monthly employer declaration: what it covers, when it is due and how to file itHow the EMP201 works: what it declares (PAYE, UIF, SDL, ETI), the 7th-of-the-month due date rule, the PRN, penalties and interest, and filing on eFiling.
- EMP501 employer reconciliation: periods, filing windows and how to get it to balanceThe EMP501 explained: interim and annual reconciliation periods, the filing windows, e@syFile Employer, matching EMP201s to IRP5s and common rejections.
- IRP5 and IT3(a) certificates: what they are, when employees get them and how to fix errorsWhat an IRP5 and an IT3(a) are, how source codes work, when employers must issue them (60 days or 14 days), and how errors on a certificate are corrected.
- The UI-19 form: declaring your employees to the Unemployment Insurance FundWhat the UI-19 employee declaration is, when employers submit it (new hires, changes, terminations), uFiling and UIF Online, and its role in UIF claims.
Free checkers
- Is this COIDA Letter of Good Standing valid?Check whether a COIDA Letter of Good Standing is valid: verify a contractor’s letter or find out why your own business can’t get one yet.
- Is my company still active on CIPC?What your CIPC company status means, from In Business to AR Final Deregistration, and what to do if your company is being deregistered.
- Have I filed my beneficial ownership declaration?Check whether your company’s CIPC beneficial ownership declaration is filed and up to date, and what to do if it is missing, stuck or out of date.
Glossary
Short definitions of the tax, payroll and company terms used in these guides, in the business tax glossary.