Start with three figures: what you earned, what was deducted, and what was paid into your bank account. This guide connects those figures using a fictional example, then gives you a checklist for questions to take to payroll.
A sample payslip
This is a fictional worked example, not an official payslip or a promise of your take-home pay. It assumes a full year of unchanged earnings, an employee under 65, a R1,875 monthly retirement contribution and the stated medical scheme credit:
| Line | Amount (R) |
|---|---|
| Gross pay | 25,000.00 |
| Pension / provident (7.5%) | 1,875.00 |
| PAYE (before medical tax credit) | 2,893.50 |
| Medical scheme fees tax credit (2 members) | − 752.00 |
| UIF (1%) | 177.12 |
| Medical aid | 1,200.00 |
| Total deductions | 5,393.62 |
| Net pay (take-home) | 19,606.38 |
The exact figures will differ for you — different pension percentages, medical aid plans and earnings levels all change the mix. What matters is understanding what each line is and why it’s there.
Gross pay
Gross pay is the total amount you earned before any deductions — your basic salary plus allowances, bonuses, commissions, overtime and any taxable fringe benefits (like a company car or cellphone allowance). If your payslip shows “gross” and “basic” as separate lines, the difference is usually allowances or a bonus.
The deductions you’ll see
PAYE (Pay As You Earn)
Income tax your employer withholds on SARS’s behalf and pays over to SARS each month. It’s calculated from your annualised salary, the SARS tax brackets and your rebates — the same method our PAYE calculator uses. PAYE is not your final tax bill; it’s an estimate that gets reconciled when you file your annual return.
If you’re on medical aid, check your payslip for a medical scheme fees tax credit line — it reduces the PAYE you pay each month. The credit is R376 a month for each of the first two covered persons (the main member and their first dependant) in 2026/27, with R254 for each additional dependant — so a member with one dependant gets R752 off their monthly PAYE, as in the sample above.
UIF (Unemployment Insurance Fund)
A compulsory insurance contribution of 1% of your gross pay, capped at the R17,712 monthly earnings ceiling — so the maximum you can ever see deducted is R177.12 (unchanged since June 2021). Your employer pays a matching 1%, but that extra amount never appears on your payslip. UIF is not a tax and is not refundable at year-end; it funds benefits if you’re retrenched, ill or on maternity leave. Not sure of the difference? Read PAYE vs UIF.
Pension / provident fund
Your contribution to a retirement fund — commonly 5–10% of your pensionable salary. The tax benefit is generous: contributions are deductible up to 27.5% of the greater of your remuneration or taxable income, capped at R430,000 per year for 2026/27. Your employer may contribute as well (often matching), which is a separate line on some payslips.
Medical aid
Your monthly medical scheme contribution. It’s not a deduction from tax, but it does unlock the medical scheme fees tax credit mentioned above, which reduces your PAYE.
Other deductions
Group life cover, union fees, staff loans (e.g. a housing advance), garnishee orders, or repayment of an overpayment. Each should match an agreement you signed — don’t ignore mystery lines.
Net pay (take-home pay)
Net pay is what’s actually paid into your bank account: gross pay minus all deductions. If net pay and your bank deposit don’t match, something is wrong — check leave taken, advances or retroactive adjustments first.
Gross vs net — and cost to company
One more distinction is worth knowing:
- Cost to company (CTC) — everything your employer spends on you: salary plus employer contributions (UIF, pension, medical aid contributions).
- Gross pay — your salary before your own deductions.
- Net pay — what lands in your bank account.
If a job offer quotes a CTC figure, don’t assume it equals your salary. Ask for the gross-to-net breakdown. Our explainer on gross salary vs net salary walks through an example.
Checking your payslip
When the calculator and your payslip disagree
Our calculator does not include medical scheme tax credits or your medical aid deduction. In the example above, the calculator would show R20,054.38 after pension, PAYE and UIF. Adding the R752 credit and subtracting the R1,200 medical contribution produces R19,606.38. The difference is not automatically an error: the two calculations include different items.
Before reporting a discrepancy, collect your payslip, the salary breakdown in your contract, and the amounts you entered into the calculator. Ask payroll:
- Is this month’s pay affected by a bonus, unpaid leave, overtime or a correction?
- Which retirement contributions and medical credits were used?
- Is a tax directive or taxable benefit affecting the calculation?
- Can you explain each deduction and reconcile net pay to my bank payment?
Do not send an unredacted payslip to a public forum. Hide your identity number, tax number, bank details and employee number before sharing an example.
A quick three-step check, every month:
- Confirm gross pay matches your contract or salary letter — including any agreed increase.
- Confirm PAYE matches what the SARS tax tables say for your income (or use the PAYE calculator to estimate it).
- Confirm UIF is 1% of your gross, capped at R177.12 per month.
Common payslip errors
- Wrong gross amount — an increase not applied, or a bonus taxed in the wrong month.
- PAYE on the wrong brackets — rare with modern payroll systems, but worth spot-checking after a salary change.
- UIF over-deducted — if you see more than R177.12, that’s a mistake.
- Pension not deducted but still shown — sometimes a contribution lapses; you pay tax on that money instead.
- Advances — a salary advance is deducted from a later month’s pay; it should appear as its own line.
If anything looks wrong, ask your payroll department first — most errors are human, not malicious. You can also request your IRP5/IT3(a) tax certificate from your employer at year-end to verify the totals before filing with SARS.
Where to verify
- SARS — tax rates, rebates, and the official PAYE employer tables.
- UIF (Department of Employment and Labour) — UIF rules and claims.
- Your employer’s payroll department — for anything specific to your contract.
Want to understand the tax side deeper? Start with how PAYE works. Match each payslip to the correct March-to-February individual tax year when preparing your records.