Experts warn consumers need relief ahead of SA’s mid-term budget statement

AS SOUTH Africa approached the Medium-Term Budget Policy Statement (MTBPS) on 12 November 2025, experts highlighted the mounting financial pressure on consumers, particularly regarding tax policies, inflationary adjustments, and household debt.

- ASHLEY LECHMAN

Hayley Parry, Money Coach and Facilitator at 1Life’s Truth About Money, said one of the most pressing issues for households was bracket creep.

“For the last three years SARS has decided not to adjust the tax brackets and that puts enormous pressure on your salary. Even if we receive an increase linked to inflation or discretionary bonuses, it is not coming through to the bottom line because essentially we are paying more tax,” she said.

Parry noted that in the last financial year, SARS collected R19.5 billion in additional revenue by not adjusting tax brackets for inflation.

“This is a critical thing we need to be looking at in this statement. It is an indication of whether this approach will continue next year, which has an enormous impact on South Africans and their take-home pay.”

Parry also pointed to limitations on tax-free savings accounts.

Introduced in 2015 to encourage saving and investing, the accounts had a lifetime contribution limit of R500,000.