What is Code 3601 on a South African Payslip?
The most common SARS source code — plain-English explanation, tax impact and a worked example for the 2026/2027 tax year.
3601 Code 3601 is your normal taxable income — your regular salary or wage on which your employer calculates and deducts PAYE each month. It appears on every payslip and on your annual IRP5 certificate.
What Code 3601 Means
Code 3601 falls under SARS's normal income category — the 3600 series — which covers all forms of regular employment income. Specifically, code 3601 represents income that is fully subject to PAYE (Pay-As-You-Earn) income tax. This is your base salary or wage: the amount your employer pays you for your time and labour under your employment contract.
The code is defined in the SARS Business Requirements Specification (BRS) for PAYE Employer Reconciliation and appears on your monthly payslip as a line item. At the end of each tax year, your employer consolidates all your monthly code 3601 amounts and reports the annual total on your IRP5 certificate, which is submitted to SARS.
Important distinctions to keep in mind: code 3601 covers your regular salary only. Overtime is reported under code 3607, annual bonuses and 13th cheques under code 3605, and commission income under code 3606. Each type of income appears separately on your IRP5 so that SARS can apply the correct tax treatment to each.
How Code 3601 Affects Your Take-Home Pay
Your code 3601 figure is the starting point for your entire PAYE calculation. Your employer applies the SARS progressive tax brackets to your annual code 3601 amount, subtracts your age-based rebate and any applicable medical aid tax credits, then divides the result by 12 to arrive at your monthly PAYE deduction. The larger your code 3601, the higher the tax bracket you enter — and the more PAYE is deducted each month.
If you contribute to a retirement annuity (RA) or pension fund, those contributions reduce your taxable income — but the reduction is applied to the PAYE calculation, not to the code 3601 figure itself. Your code 3601 always reflects your gross salary before any deductions.
Use the PAYE Calculator to see exactly how much PAYE is deducted from your code 3601 under the 2026/2027 SARS tax tables.
Example Calculation — Code 3601 at R30,000 per Month
To see how code 3601 flows through to your take-home pay, here is a step-by-step worked example for an employee earning R30,000 gross per month in the 2026/2027 tax year, under 65, no medical aid.
| Step | Amount |
|---|---|
| Gross monthly salary (Code 3601) | R30,000 |
| Annual taxable income (× 12) | R360,000 |
| Tax on first R245,100 at 18% | R44,118 |
| Tax on remaining R114,900 at 26% | R29,874 |
| Gross annual tax | R73,992 |
| Less: Primary rebate | − R17,235 |
| Annual PAYE | R56,757 |
| Monthly PAYE (÷ 12) — Code 4102 | R4,730 |
| UIF contribution (1%, capped) | R177.12 |
| Monthly take-home pay | R25,093 |
Your annual IRP5 would show code 3601 as R360,000 and code 4102 as R56,757 — the total PAYE your employer deducted and paid to SARS on your behalf during the year.
Frequently Asked Questions
What does code 3601 mean on my payslip?
Code 3601 is your normal taxable income — your regular salary or wage as reported by your employer to SARS. It is the gross amount on which your monthly PAYE income tax is calculated. Almost every employee in South Africa will have a code 3601 on their payslip and IRP5 certificate.
Is code 3601 taxable?
Yes. Code 3601 is fully taxable under South African income tax law. Your employer uses this figure to calculate PAYE using the SARS progressive tax brackets. The higher your code 3601, the more PAYE is deducted each month. This is in contrast to code 3602, which covers non-taxable income.
Why does code 3601 appear on my IRP5?
Your IRP5 certificate is the annual summary of your earnings and deductions submitted by your employer to SARS. Code 3601 on your IRP5 reflects your total normal taxable salary for the full tax year (1 March to 28 February). SARS uses this figure to pre-populate your annual return on eFiling and to verify that the PAYE deducted was correct.
What is the difference between code 3601 and code 3602?
Code 3601 covers taxable income on which PAYE is deducted. Code 3602 covers non-taxable income, such as certain disability payments or income exempt under specific SARS provisions. Most employees will only have a code 3601. If you have both, your employer has split your income into taxable and non-taxable portions as permitted under the Income Tax Act.
Does code 3601 include overtime and bonuses?
No. Overtime is reported separately under code 3607 and annual bonuses or 13th cheques under code 3605. Commission is reported under code 3606. Code 3601 covers your regular base salary only. All three are taxable income codes but they appear separately on your IRP5 so SARS can identify the nature of each payment and apply the correct tax treatment.
What should I do if code 3601 on my IRP5 looks wrong?
First, multiply your gross monthly salary by the number of months you worked in that tax year — the result should match your IRP5 code 3601. If there is a discrepancy, contact your employer's payroll department and request a corrected IRP5. Do not submit your tax return until the IRP5 is accurate, as errors can result in an incorrect SARS assessment.
Related Payslip Codes
Full explainers for these codes coming soon.