Taxes on income, profits and capital gains in South Africa
South Africa: Taxes on income, profits and capital gains was 57.8% in 2024. ▼ Falling
Taxes on income, profits and capital gains in South Africa, 1972–2024
Source: Government Finance Statistics Yearbook and data files, International Monetary Fund (IMF). Measured in % of total taxes.
Analysis
South Africa recorded 57.8% for taxes on income, profits and capital gains in 2024.
That represents a change of up 2.5% on the previous year and up 4.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, taxes on income, profits and capital gains in South Africa peaked at 70.2% in 1974 and was at its lowest, 51.6%, in 1989.
South Africa ranks 17th of 153 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 53 years of available data.
Taxes on income, profits and capital gains in South Africa, year by year
| Year | % of total taxes | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1972 | 63.8% | — |
| 1973 | 66.4% | +4.1% |
| 1974 | 70.2% | +5.7% |
| 1975 | 68.6% | -2.3% |
| 1976 | 66.9% | -2.5% |
| 1977 | 63.7% | -4.7% |
| 1978 | 61.0% | -4.2% |
| 1979 | 61.5% | +0.8% |
| 1980 | 64.9% | +5.5% |
| 1981 | 61.4% | -5.4% |
| 1982 | 59.5% | -3.1% |
| 1983 | 59.9% | +0.7% |
| 1984 | 57.9% | -3.3% |
| 1985 | 58.6% | +1.1% |
| 1986 | 58.4% | -0.3% |
| 1987 | 56.7% | -2.8% |
| 1988 | 54.3% | -4.3% |
| 1989 | 51.6% | -4.9% |
| 1990 | 56.0% | +8.6% |
| 1991 | 57.5% | +2.6% |
| 1992 | 58.5% | +1.7% |
| 1993 | 53.3% | -8.9% |
| 1994 | 54.5% | +2.4% |
| 1995 | 54.0% | -0.9% |
| 1996 | 56.3% | +4.1% |
| 1997 | 57.4% | +2.1% |
| 1998 | 58.3% | +1.6% |
| 1999 | 57.7% | -1.2% |
| 2000 | 57.1% | -1.0% |
| 2001 | 58.2% | +2.0% |
| 2002 | 58.1% | -0.2% |
| 2003 | 56.3% | -3.1% |
| 2004 | 54.4% | -3.3% |
| 2005 | 54.7% | +0.5% |
| 2006 | 55.8% | +2.1% |
| 2007 | 57.0% | +2.2% |
| 2008 | 60.4% | +5.8% |
| 2009 | 58.7% | -2.8% |
| 2010 | 55.2% | -5.9% |
| 2011 | 56.1% | +1.5% |
| 2012 | 54.9% | -2.0% |
| 2013 | 55.1% | +0.3% |
| 2014 | 55.6% | +1.0% |
| 2015 | 54.8% | -1.5% |
| 2016 | 56.2% | +2.6% |
| 2017 | 56.6% | +0.6% |
| 2018 | 55.3% | -2.2% |
| 2019 | 55.2% | -0.2% |
| 2020 | 55.5% | +0.5% |
| 2021 | 56.7% | +2.1% |
| 2022 | 57.0% | +0.5% |
| 2023 | 56.4% | -1.0% |
| 2024 | 57.8% | +2.5% |
South Africa compared with similar countries
- South Africa's 57.8% is above the median for upper middle income countries, which is 37.1%, 1.6× the median. (48 countries reporting)
- South Africa's 57.8% is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 33.6%, 1.7× the median. (35 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 65.3% | 61.0% | 70.2% | 8 |
| 1980s | 58.3% | 51.6% | 64.9% | 10 |
| 1990s | 56.4% | 53.3% | 58.5% | 10 |
| 2000s | 57.1% | 54.4% | 60.4% | 10 |
| 2010s | 55.5% | 54.8% | 56.6% | 10 |
| 2020s | 56.7% | 55.5% | 57.8% | 5 |
Countries ranked near South Africa
More public sector data for South Africa
- Democracy, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Men's universal right to vote, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Universal right to vote, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Universal right to vote in practice, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Elected parliament, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Chief executive of the government is elected, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Democracy 7 (2025)
- Chief executive of the government is elected 1 (2025)
- Elected parliament 1 (2025)
- Men's universal right to vote 1 (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is taxes on income, profits and capital gains in South Africa?
- Taxes on income, profits and capital gains in South Africa was 57.8% in 2024, according to Government Finance Statistics Yearbook and data files, International Monetary Fund (IMF).
- What is the highest taxes on income, profits and capital gains recorded in South Africa?
- The highest recorded value was 70.2% in 1974.
- What is the lowest taxes on income, profits and capital gains recorded in South Africa?
- The lowest recorded value was 51.6% in 1989.
- How does South Africa rank for taxes on income, profits and capital gains?
- South Africa ranks 17th out of 153 countries with data for 2024.
- Is taxes on income, profits and capital gains rising or falling in South Africa?
- Over the last ten years it is up 4.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this South Africa data come from?
- The figures come from Government Finance Statistics Yearbook and data files, International Monetary Fund (IMF), published as part of Taxes on income, profits and capital gains (% of total taxes). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
Taxes on income, profits, and capital gains are taxes payable on the actual or presumed incomes, profits and capital gains. This indicator is expressed as a percentage of total taxes which includes all compulsory, unrequited payments, in cash or in kind, made by institutional units to government units.