How our hard-earned tax bucks are being spent by government

Changes in taxes, levies and social grants in the Budget show how government policy will affect ordinary people as they influence public services and determine how resources are distributed. By Kara le Roux

- By Kara le Roux

Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana (second from left) and SARS commissioner Edward Kieswetter (second from right) arrive at the 2026 Budget speech at the Nieuwmeester Dome in Cape Town on 25 February.

(Photo: Ziyaad Douglas/Gallo Images)

As Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana delivered the 2026 National Budget on Wednesday, 25 February, the stakes for South Africa's fiscal arithmetic have seldom been higher.

After a dramatic reversal of the proposed VAT hike in 2025 a move that left a R75-billion hole in the books - Treasury has been forced to find a path between maintaining fiscal discipline and reigniting a stalled economy.

Daily Maverick breaks down what the numbers and tables actually mean, where every R100 of South Africans' tax goes, how the country is handling debt and if, amid tentatively positive signs, the 2026 Budget reflects a stronger economy than a year ago.

This year's Budget shows a smaller shortfall than its predecessor, alongside a R400-billion increase in economic output.

In 2025, proposed VAT hikes were scrapped in the third and final iteration of the Budget. Godongwana also announced a R20-billion tax plan, which was set to be revealed in 2026. But lo and behold, the South African Revenue Service did such a good job of collecting tax that the previously pencilled R20-billion has been withdrawn from the Budget.