SARS fraud warning

With tax season in full swing, the South African Revenue Service (SARS) is warning South Africans to avoid scams, which are becoming increasingly prevalent.

On 19 August, SARS issued an alert warning taxpayers about ‘Process Quote Letter’ scams, the newest tactic being employed by fraudsters.

Scammers use an email address which looks similar to the one SARS uses for eFiling notifications: [email protected].

“The subject line of the email is ‘PROCESS QUOTE LETTER’ and it asks the recipient to ‘Please kindly process SARS letter for attention’, linking to a fraudulent website,” the taxman explained.

SARS stressed that recipients should not click the link, as it leads to a phishing website asking for their personal details.

“If unsure, always hover over the link to see whether it’s a strange website name. Or, if in doubt, look at our Scams webpage with the latest examples and what to do if you receive a suspicious email,” the taxman suggested.

This isn’t the only type of fraud SARS has cautioned against during the 2025 tax season. Scammers have also been sending taxpayers false eFiling statements, letters of demand, and payment notifications, to name a few.

Every year, tax season creates a ripe hunting ground for scammers. This is largely because taxpayers are expecting communications from SARS.

In addition, their fear of non-compliance may drive them to engage with communications from scammers without a second thought.

SARS has also been ramping up its collection efforts in 2025 in an effort to curb non-compliance and recover tax debts.

To achieve this goal, the National Treasury has awarded SARS billions to improve its efficiency, which it is doing by leveraging artificial intelligence and data science.

With this improved capacity, it is more important than ever for taxpayers to sort out their tax affairs and engage with the taxman to avoid strict penalties and even potential jail time.

Scams are becoming more difficult to spot

Considering the high stakes for taxpayers in 2025, scammers are taking advantage of this period to manipulate them into handing over their money and personal information.

The Southern African Fraud Prevention Service (SAFPS) also recently warned that scammers are increasingly impersonating SARS to achieve this goal.

“Fraudsters are exceptionally active during this period, and taxpayers must stay alert to the latest tactics being used to steal personal data and funds,” said SAFPS CEO Manie van Schalkwyk.

“Scammers impersonate SARS officials and persuade and manipulate victims into voluntarily surrendering sensitive data under false pretences or into paying them money.”

He explained that phishing SMSs and emails, such as ‘Process Quote Letter’ scams, are becoming more sophisticated and difficult to spot.

“Our brains are conditioned to gloss over subtle differences unless we’re actively scanning for them. This is exactly what makes these tactics so dangerous,” Van Schalkwyk explained.

Not only do scammers use email addresses that look similar to the taxman’s, but the hyperlink may also look very similar to the real SARS website.

For example, they may replace South Africa with South Afrìca, using a special character that looks similar to the original.

When recipients click the link, the website may claim that the taxpayer is owed a refund or that SARS is auditing their rebate. Recipients will then be asked to verify their banking details or personal information.

Scammers could also redirect taxpayers to a malicious website, potentially compromising their devices and stealing their personal information.

“The email may say it’s from SARS and look realistic,” Van Schalkwyk said. “However, if you look at the actual email address, it is not an official SARS email address.”

“Scammers can change the display name to appear as SARS, and if you are not concentrating, you could click on the link or action the request due to fear.”

He urged consumers to scrutinise the sender’s email address. If it does not include “@SARS.gov.za”, it is probably a scam.