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Pension question, South Africa

Can I withdraw my South African retirement annuity after emigrating?

SARS's tax-directive guide states that, effective 1 March 2021, a member of a retirement annuity fund who has stopped contributing and who has ceased to be a South African tax resident for an uninterrupted period of three years or longer on or after 1 March 2021 may withdraw the full benefit before electing to retire from the fund. The same guide states the taxpayer must inform SARS as soon as he or she ceased to be an SA resident, and that if the member did not inform SARS the application will be rejected.

What to do next

  1. Find the date your South African tax residence ended.
  2. Find your SARS tax reference number on old papers.
  3. Run our free check to see which other countries set a clock on your pension.

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Questions people also ask

Is the old emigration withdrawal still accepted?

The old 'emigration withdrawal' route (SARB-recognised financial emigration) was only available for emigrations accepted by SARB on or before 28 February 2022, and directive applications using that reason are no longer accepted from 1 September 2024 as the enabling legislation has been repealed.

Do you give advice on what to do?

No. We identify where a pension is likely held and the official route to it, and we name each source with the date we read it. We do not give financial, tax or legal advice.