SARS Traveller Declaration: What SA Expats Need to Know (2026)

The SARS traveller declaration is now mandatory for every trip in or out of South Africa

If you are a South African expat who visits home regularly, or you are planning your first trip back since moving abroad, there is a new step you need to know about. From 1 July 2026, every person entering or leaving South Africa through any air, land, sea or rail port must submit an online SARS traveller declaration before they travel. That includes South African citizens, permanent residents, foreign nationals, business travellers and even children. No exceptions based on citizenship. No exceptions based on how long you have been away.

This is not a future proposal or a pilot programme. The system went live on 1 July 2026 and SARS is already enforcing it at major airports including OR Tambo, Cape Town International and King Shaka. If you are flying home to visit family, returning to South Africa after years abroad or just transiting through for work, this affects you.

This guide breaks down exactly what the declaration is, how to complete it, what you need to declare, the duty-free limits, what happens if you skip it and what it means specifically for South African expats who no longer live in the country.

What is the SARS traveller declaration?

The SARS traveller declaration is a short online form you submit to the South African Revenue Service before crossing any South African border. On it, you provide your passport details, your travel information, your contact details and details of any goods, cash or financial instruments you are carrying that need to be declared.

South Africa has always had customs declaration requirements. Until now, the process relied on paper forms (the old blue TC-01 card you may remember from flights) that you would fill in on the plane or at the border. The new system replaces that paper process with a digital one, managed through what SARS calls the South African Traveller Management System (SATMS).

Once you submit the form, SARS emails you a confirmation with instructions on what to do when you arrive at the port of entry. You save that confirmation on your phone or print it out, then follow the instructions and signage at the airport or border post.

Why is SARS doing this?

SARS has given three main reasons for the switch to mandatory online declarations.

The first is faster border processing. When travellers complete the paperwork before arriving, customs officials can pre-screen declarations and direct people through the correct channels without holding up queues. In theory, this means less time standing in line at the airport.

The second is easier compliance. Moving the process online means you can complete it from your couch the day before your flight instead of scrambling for a pen on the plane. It also creates a digital record, which reduces the chance of errors or disputes at the border.

The third reason is risk management. SARS wants to identify higher-risk declarations before travellers arrive, rather than relying on random checks after the fact. The system feeds into what SARS describes as a “whole-of-government approach” to monitoring cross-border activity.

The system was actually piloted at OR Tambo, Cape Town International and King Shaka airports back in 2022 and has been running voluntarily since then. From 1 July 2026 it became compulsory at all ports.

Who has to submit the SARS traveller declaration?

Almost everyone. The rule applies to all of the following groups.

South African citizens, whether you live in the country or have been abroad for twenty years. Permanent residents of South Africa. Foreign nationals visiting or passing through South Africa. Business travellers entering or leaving the country for work. Children and infants, with a parent or guardian completing the form on their behalf. If you are travelling with someone who cannot fill in the form due to age, illness or disability, you submit it for them and take responsibility for the accuracy.

There is one exemption. If you are only transiting through South Africa on a connecting flight or ship and you do not leave the international transit area, you do not need to declare. Everyone else does.

This is an important point for expats specifically. Even if you have ceased your South African tax residency, even if you have completed financial emigration, and even if you no longer have a South African tax number, you still have to submit the traveller declaration every time you enter or leave the country. The declaration is a customs requirement, not an income tax requirement. It applies to every traveller regardless of tax status.

When do you submit it?

You must submit the online declaration no more than 24 hours before you depart from the country you are travelling from. That means you fill it in the day before your flight or on the day of travel, not three weeks in advance.

If your trip involves connecting flights, the 24-hour window runs from the departure of your final leg directly into South Africa. So if you are flying from London to Johannesburg with a layover in Dubai, you submit the declaration within 24 hours of your Dubai-to-Johannesburg departure.

The same 24-hour rule applies when leaving South Africa. Submit the declaration within 24 hours of your outbound departure from a South African airport, land border or seaport.

The system enforces this window. If you try to submit the form earlier than 24 hours before your travel date, it will not let you select the date. Plan to complete it the day before you fly.

What information do you need?

Have the following ready before you start the form.

If you have all of this on hand, the form takes about five to ten minutes to complete.

How to submit the SARS traveller declaration

You have several options for submitting the declaration. All of them are free.

Option 1: The SARS website. Go to the Traveller Management System on the SARS website at tools.sars.gov.za/sarsonlinequery/traveller. This works on any browser, desktop or mobile.

Option 2: The SATMS mobile app. Download the South African Traveller Management System app from the Apple App Store, Google Play Store or Huawei AppGallery. Search for “SATMS” or “South African Traveller Management System”.

Option 3: The SARS MobiApp. If you already have the general SARS MobiApp on your phone, you can submit the declaration from within it.

Option 4: Self-service kiosks. Some airports have self-service terminals where you can complete the declaration on arrival, but this should be your backup plan, not your first choice. The queues at these terminals can be long, especially in the early weeks of enforcement.

Once you submit, SARS sends a confirmation email with customs instructions. Save that email or print the confirmation. You may need to show it at the port.

A note on reliability. Early reports from travellers suggest the system can be slow, with timeouts and error screens, particularly during peak travel periods. Give yourself enough time and do not leave it to the last minute before your flight.

What do you actually have to declare?

This is where the confusion starts for most people, so let’s be clear about what does and does not need to be declared.

You do NOT need to declare your ordinary personal belongings. Your clothes, your phone, your laptop, your toiletries and anything else you use daily and are carrying for personal use do not need to be listed on the declaration. SARS has confirmed this in its official FAQs.

You DO need to declare the following.

Goods above the duty-free allowance. If you bought items abroad and are bringing them into South Africa, and those items exceed the duty-free limits (explained below), you must declare them.

Commercial goods. Anything you are bringing in for trade, sale, business use or any other commercial purpose must be declared. Goods may also be treated as commercial if their nature, quantity or volume suggests they are intended for business rather than personal use.

Cash and financial instruments above the threshold. If you are carrying more than R100,000 in local or foreign currency, or in bearer negotiable instruments (things like traveller’s cheques or promissory notes), you must declare it. The form will ask you for the type of currency, the amount, the rand value and where the money came from.

Goods for temporary import or export. If you are bringing expensive equipment into South Africa temporarily (for example, professional camera gear for a shoot), you should declare it so you can take it back out without being charged duty on departure. This also applies to foreign-registered vehicles entering by road.

The duty-free allowances explained

These are the current limits per person when entering South Africa.

There are important conditions attached to these allowances.

The allowance resets once every 30 days. You cannot claim it again if you re-enter within 30 days of your last claim. The allowance also does not apply if you were out of the country for less than 48 hours. Each person gets their own allowance and you cannot combine allowances between family members. So a couple travelling together gets R5,000 each, not R10,000 shared.

For expats visiting home, the R5,000 duty-free limit is low. A new phone, a laptop or even a decent pair of shoes bought abroad can push you past that threshold. If you are bringing gifts or new purchases back, keep your receipts and be prepared to declare anything above the limit.

What happens if you do not submit the declaration?

SARS has clarified that you will not be denied entry into or departure from South Africa solely because you have not completed the declaration before arriving. That is the good news.

The practical reality is less comfortable. If you arrive without a completed declaration, SARS customs officials will direct you to a self-service terminal at the airport to complete it on the spot. In the early weeks of enforcement, reports from travellers suggest this is inconsistent. Some airports like Cape Town and Durban have been more active in checking declarations, while OR Tambo has been lighter. That will likely change as the system beds in.

Failing to declare goods, making a false declaration or providing inaccurate information is a more serious matter. Under customs legislation, it can lead to delays, detention of goods, forfeiture, financial penalties and other enforcement action. The penalties apply whether or not duties were actually payable.

The simplest approach is to fill in the form honestly and keep the confirmation. A few minutes of admin saves potential hours of hassle at the border.

What this means for South African expats specifically

If you live abroad and visit South Africa once or twice a year, there are a few things to keep in mind beyond the basics.

The physical presence test and your travel records. If you are still a South African tax resident and rely on the 183-day rule to exempt your foreign employment income, your travel dates matter. The traveller declaration system now creates a timestamped digital record of every time you enter and leave South Africa. SARS will have direct access to this data. If you have been estimating your days in and out of the country loosely, tighten that up. The information is now tracked automatically.

Currency declarations for expats sending money home. If you are carrying large amounts of cash into South Africa, perhaps to help family or to invest, you must declare anything above R100,000. This is separate from the Reserve Bank exchange control regulations that apply to transferring money through banks. Carrying undeclared currency above the threshold is a customs offence regardless of where the money came from or what you plan to do with it.

For expats who are still navigating their broader tax obligations to South Africa, including whether you owe tax on foreign income, whether the foreign income exemption applies to you, or whether you should consider formally ceasing your tax residency, the complete guide to South African expat tax covers all of that in detail.

Step-by-step summary

Here is the process from start to finish.

Before you travel (within 24 hours of departure): Go to the SARS Traveller Management System at tools.sars.gov.za, or use the SATMS app. Enter your passport details, travel information, contact details and details of any goods or cash you need to declare. Submit the form and save the confirmation email.

At the airport or border: Follow the instructions in your confirmation email. Proceed through immigration as normal, then follow the customs signage. If you declared goods, proceed to the red channel. If you had nothing to declare, proceed through the green channel unless instructed otherwise. Have your confirmation available on your phone or printed out in case an officer asks to see it.

If you could not submit online: Approach the self-service terminals or customs service counters at the port for assistance. In limited cases, paper declarations may still be accepted, but online submission is now the default.

Paper declarations are not completely gone

SARS has confirmed that paper forms have not disappeared entirely. A manual declaration may still be used where there is a SARS systems failure, where internet connectivity is not available at the port, or where a traveller has another reasonable ground for being unable to submit electronically. This is especially relevant at remote land borders or rail crossings where connectivity is unreliable.

That said, the online system is now the default and SARS clearly expects everyone to use it. Treat the paper option as a genuine last resort, not a workaround.

VAT refunds still work with the new system

If you bought goods in South Africa and want to claim a VAT refund when you leave, the process still works alongside the new declaration system. Declare the relevant goods through the traveller declaration, then present yourself to customs at the port for verification. After customs has inspected the goods, you proceed to the VAT Refund Administrator office to finalise your claim.

The bottom line for expats

The SARS traveller declaration adds one small step to your travel routine, but it is not complicated. Fill in the form online within 24 hours of departure, save the confirmation, and follow the instructions at the airport. If you have nothing to declare beyond your personal belongings, it takes five minutes.

Where it gets more interesting for expats is in the data trail it creates. SARS now has a digital record of every border crossing, which feeds directly into its ability to verify your tax obligations, your days spent in South Africa and the assets you are moving across the border. Whether that is a concern depends on your specific situation, but the days of SARS having limited visibility over expat travel patterns are clearly ending.