Two more months of petrol and diesel price relief for South Africa

The National Treasury has announced that the temporary R3 per litre reduction in the general fuel levy will be extended to May and, partially, to June to provide some relief amid rising fuel prices.

The Treasury said this relief measure was designed to be fiscally neutral, and the government will implement mechanisms to recoup the foregone revenue within the fiscal framework approved in the 2026 Budget.

This comes after similar relief was announced for April, when South Africans were set to face one of the largest fuel price increases in the country’s history.

The Central Energy Fund signalled an under-recovery of around R5.82 per litre for petrol and about R10.27 per litre for diesel in April.

However, on 31 March, Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana announced a temporary R3 per litre relief on the fuel levy for April.

Since this announcement, the continuation of the Middle East conflict has resulted in consistent pressure on global oil prices, which has led to increases in domestic fuel prices.

The Central Energy Fund’s latest forecasts predict an underrecovery of between R1.8 and R2.09 per litre of petrol and around R5.43 per litre of diesel for May.

Therefore, to provide further relief and address concerns about higher inflation and the negative impacts on economic growth, the National Treasury proposed several relief measures for May and June 2026.

Included in these measures is an extension of the temporary reduction in the general fuel levy, which is set to be extended until Tuesday, 2 June 2026.

“Given the large expected increases in the price of diesel, the Minister of Finance proposes that the temporary relief for diesel is increased by 93 cents to R3.93 per litre,” the Treasury said.

This will reduce the levy to zero, effective from Wednesday, 6 May 2026, to Tuesday, 2 June 2026. 

The general fuel levy for petrol will remain at R1.10 per litre, while the general fuel levy for diesel will decrease from R0.93 per litre to R0.00 per litre.

In addition, Godongwana proposed that the level of relief be halved for June to phase out the relief before July. 

“As a result, the amount of relief from the general fuel levy will be reduced to R1.50 per litre for petrol and R1.96 per litre for diesel, effective from Wednesday, 3 June 2026, to Tuesday, 30 June 2026,” it said. 

This will increase the general fuel levy for petrol from R1.10 per litre to R2.60 per litre and increase the general fuel levy for diesel from R0.00 per litre to R1.97 per litre.

Then, from 1 July onwards, the general fuel levy for petrol will return to R4.10 per litre, and the general fuel levy for diesel will return to R3.93 per litre.

The Treasury estimated that the cost of the temporary fuel levy relief from April to June 2026 is R17.2 billion in foregone tax revenue.

“The fuel levy relief measure is designed to be revenue-neutral and will be funded through a combination of higher-than-expected tax revenue and underspending,” the Treasury said.

It specified that this relief will not have an impact on the fiscal framework adopted by Parliament following the 2026 Budget. 

“The Department of Mineral and Petroleum Resources has initiated a review of the formula whose conclusion will determine how fuel prices are regulated going forward,” it added.