How much tax you pay when buying a litre of petrol

On average, 33.5% of the price South Africans pay for a litre of fuel is taxes and levies.

The taxes and levies on South Africa’s fuels are adjusted at the start of each financial year, while the Slate Levy that was added to the local fuel prices in 2021 changes monthly.

As of February 2022, the following elements are taken into account in South Africa’s inland fuel price calculations – according to the Central Energy Fund.

In the 2019/2020 financial year, Stats SA said the Road Accident Fund (RAF) levy brought in R41.2 billion for the RAF, accounting for 99.8% of the organisation’s total revenue.

During the same period, the General Fuel Levy generated R80 billion for the government, with R13.2 billion “set aside and transferred to South Africa’s eight metropolitan municipalities.”

“The general fuel levy is a tax on each litre of fuel. The RAF levy is a source of revenue for the RAF that is responsible for compensating victims of motor vehicle accidents,” said Stats SA.

The Slate Levy then goes to the Department of Energy at the end of each month.

Local fuel prices are calculated on a daily basis and the daily price is either higher or lower than the average price for that month – with these price differentials known as under-recoveries or over-recoveries.

The cumulative balance of these recoveries go into the country’s slate account at month-end and is paid for by the Slate Levy.

The graph below provides a visual overview of how the components which make up the petrol price have risen since 2008.

Taxes on fuel

According to the figures above, the taxes and levies South Africans are currently paying per litre of inland fuel are as follows: