The South African Revenue Services (SARS) reported a 6.3% decrease in fuel levy collections in the latest financial year, with total collections coming in at R85.8 billion, versus R91.5 billion the year prior.
The drop is owing to lower fuel consumption due to improved electricity production, but also a shift from using diesel as an alternative fuel for electricity in favour of rooftop solar, said SARS Commissioner Edward Kieswetter.
On the bright side, the total revenue garnered from the GFL were more than anticipated.
Midway through the financial year, National Treasury said it only expected to receive R82.4 billion from the tax for the period.
The revised estimate was a result of lower demand for propellants by the motoring public as well as a large once-off diesel refund to farmers and food producers.
The total GFL revenue thus came in R3.4 billion higher than forecasted, representing approximately 4% of the record R2.303 trillion in taxes SARS collected over the course of the year.
Petrol tax adjustments for 2025
In March, Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana announced there would be no changes to the GFL or the Road Accident Fund (RAF) Levy for the coming financial year.
“To mitigate the effects of higher inflation arising from fuel price increases, the general fuel levy has remained unchanged since 2022,” said the minister.
“Government proposes to keep the general fuel levy unchanged for 2025/26, resulting in tax relief of about R4 billion.”
He also noted that the customs and excise levy will remain frozen for the period.
Meanwhile, the Carbon Fuel Levy has been hiked by 3c per litre to 14c per litre for petrol and 17c per litre for diesel, as required under the Carbon Tax Act of 2019.
The change came into effect on 2 April 2025.
The following table shows the total combined taxes on petrol and diesel in South Africa for the 2025/26 financial year:
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