IRP5 software — generate SARS tax certificates in one click
An IRP5 is the annual tax certificate a South African employer must issue to every employee who paid PAYE. Payroll Africa generates IRP5 and IT3(a) certificates for the full tax year, validates them against SARS field rules, and exports them to SARS e@syFile Employer — so employees can auto-populate their ITR12 tax return.
Payroll Africa Editorial · SARS Payroll Compliance Team
The Payroll Africa editorial team is composed of registered tax practitioners, payroll administrators and BCEA specialists who maintain the SARS PAYE, UIF, SDL and ETI engines that power the platform. Every article is reviewed against the current SARS BRS and Basic Conditions of Employment Act before publication.
- SARS registered tax practitioners
- SAPA-affiliated payroll administrators
- BCEA and LRA compliance reviewers
Last updated 30 Sept 2026
What is an IRP5?
IRP5 (Employees Tax Certificate) is the SARS-prescribed annual tax certificate that reports each employee's income, deductions, PAYE, UIF, SDL and ETI for the tax year. IT3(a) is the equivalent for employees who did not pay PAYE (for example, part-time or exempt earners). Both are submitted as part of the EMP501 reconciliation and issued to employees so they can file their personal ITR12 income tax return on eFiling.
How Payroll Africa generates IRP5 and IT3(a)
Every payslip written during the tax year builds the IRP5 in real time. Open the Filings module at year end, pick the tax year, and generate the certificates in seconds. Employees can view and download their IRP5 from the self-service portal, or you can email/WhatsApp secure links.
- SARS source codes mapped correctly (3601, 3605, 3701, 3810, 4001, 4102, etc.)
- Fringe benefits and allowances split correctly across codes
- Retirement fund and medical aid deductions on the right codes (4001, 4005)
- ETI, UIF and SDL populated automatically
- Nature-of-person and directive numbers validated against ID number
- One IRP5 per employment period (correct for mid-year joiners and leavers)
IRP5 source codes explained
SARS source codes classify every line of income and every deduction on the IRP5. Common income codes include 3601 (income), 3605 (annual bonus), 3701 (travel allowance) and 3810 (medical aid fringe benefit). Deduction codes include 4001 (pension), 4003 (provident), 4005 (medical aid), 4102 (PAYE) and 4141 (UIF). Payroll Africa applies the correct source code to every earning and deduction automatically.
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Stop looking this up. Let payroll do it.
Payroll Africa applies IRP5 / IT3(a) rules automatically every month — SARS PAYE, UIF and SDL, payslips, EMP201 and IRP5. From R90/month.
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