SARS has published updated average exchange rates for key foreign currencies, providing taxpayers with the data required to translate foreign currency amounts into rand under the Income Tax Act, 1962.
The South African Revenue Services (SARS) released updated Average Exchange Rates on 8 June 2026, providing essential data for calculations. The update includes rates for the Australian dollar, Canadian dollar, Euro, Hong Kong dollar, Indian rupee, Japanese yen, Swiss franc, UK pound, and US dollar.
The term “average exchange rate” is defined in section 1(1) of the Act and means, in relation to a year of assessment, the average exchange rate determined by using the closing spot rates at the end of daily or monthly intervals during a year of assessment. This rate must be applied consistently within that year of assessment.
Table A provides a list of the average exchange rates of selected currencies for a full year of assessment, starting from December 2003, while Table B presents a list of the monthly average exchange rates to assist individuals whose year of assessment is shorter or longer than 12 months.
The Income Tax Act, 1962, provides specifically that certain amounts expressed in a foreign currency must be translated into rand by the application of an applicable average exchange rate.
The South African Reserve Bank (SARB) determines weighted average exchange rates, based on the foreign exchange transactions of commercial banks. SARS publishes these rates on a quarterly basis, which may be used by stakeholders (taxpayers) in the determination of the average exchange rate when required in the Act.
