Estate Duty Calculator South Africa 2026

Reviewed & Verified
Written by the Independent Editorial Team · Reviewed & Verified by Solly Maanaso, CA(SA)

Estimate the estate duty payable on a deceased estate, using the official SARS abatement and rates.

Only 50% of the joint estate's value is attributable to the deceased for estate duty purposes — this calculator adjusts for that automatically.
Net value of the estate R 0
Less: R3,500,000 abatement - R 0
Dutiable value of the estate R 0
Estate duty payable R 0
Effective rate on gross estate 0.00%
If the surviving spouse doesn't use the full R3.5 million abatement now, any unused portion can roll over to their own estate for use when they later pass away. This calculator estimates the duty payable now; it does not project the rollover amount, since that depends on the surviving spouse's own future estate.
Source: Estate Duty Act 45 of 1955, Section 4(q) and Section 4A(2); established SARS administrative practice
This calculator covers estate duty only. A deceased estate may also face a separate capital gains tax liability from a deemed disposal of assets immediately before death — this is calculated and taxed independently of estate duty, with its own R440,000 year-of-death exclusion. See the note below for more detail.

This calculator provides a general estimate only and does not account for every individual circumstance, deduction, or exclusion that may apply to a specific estate. Estate administration is a legal process — please consult a registered tax practitioner, attorney, or the appointed executor for guidance specific to an actual estate.

How estate duty is calculated

Gross value of the estate
− Liabilities, funeral and administration costs
− Bequests to approved public benefit organisations
− Property bequeathed to a surviving spouse (full deduction)
= Net value of the estate

Net value of the estate − R3,500,000 abatement = Dutiable value

Dutiable value × 20% (up to R30 million)
+ Dutiable value above R30 million × 25%
= Estate duty payable

Source: SARS — Estate Duty page; Estate Duty Act 45 of 1955, Section 4

Dutiable value Rate
Up to R30,000,000 20%
Above R30,000,000 25% on the portion exceeding R30 million

Source: SARS — Estate Duty page; SARS Tax Rates — Other Taxes page

Estate duty applies to the worldwide property and deemed property of a natural person who was ordinarily resident in South Africa at death, and to the South African property of non-residents.
Source: SARS — Estate Duty page

Use the calculator above ↑

What reduces the amount of estate duty payable

Deductions allowed under Section 4 of the Estate Duty Act:

Source: SARS — Estate Duty page; Estate Duty Act 45 of 1955, Section 4

The spousal rollover — the single most significant deduction for most estates: Property left to a surviving spouse is deducted in full from the net value of the estate — meaning no estate duty is payable on that portion at all. If the full R3.5 million abatement is not needed by the first-dying spouse's estate (because, for example, most or all of the estate passes to the surviving spouse), the unused portion of the abatement can roll over and be added to the surviving spouse's own abatement when they later die.
Source: Estate Duty Act 45 of 1955, Section 4(q) and Section 4A(2)

If married in community of property:

A marriage in community of property creates a single joint estate. When one spouse dies, the entire joint estate must be administered — but the surviving spouse holds a 50% interest and may claim their half share. Only the deceased's 50% share is relevant for determining their estate duty liability.

Source: SARS — FAQs: Deceased Estates Income Tax and Estate Duty (Issue 4)

Retirement fund benefits are excluded, not just deducted: Benefits payable to the deceased from an approved retirement fund are excluded from the estate entirely under Section 3(2)(i) of the Estate Duty Act — they don't form part of the estate's value in the first place, rather than being deducted from it afterward.
Source: SARS — FAQs: Deceased Estates Income Tax and Estate Duty (Issue 4)

Important: the Act provides exclusions, not exemptions:

The Estate Duty Act does not provide for exemptions — only for the exclusion of certain specific property (such as approved retirement fund benefits) from the estate. This is a meaningful legal distinction: excluded property never enters the estate's value calculation at all, while deductions are subtracted after being included.

Source: SARS — FAQs: Deceased Estates Income Tax and Estate Duty (Issue 4)

Estate duty and CGT at death — two separate taxes

When a person dies, two separate tax consequences can arise — and they are easily confused:

  1. Estate duty — calculated on the net value of the estate, using the R3.5 million abatement and the 20%/25% rates described above.
  2. Capital gains tax (CGT) — triggered by a deemed disposal of the deceased's assets immediately before death (under Section 9HA of the Income Tax Act). This is calculated entirely separately, using CGT rules, and benefits from a special, increased R440,000 annual exclusion for the year of death (instead of the standard R50,000).

Source: SARS — Guide to the Individual ITR12 Return for Deceased and Insolvent Estates; SARS CGT rates page (25 February 2026)

Relief if the CGT liability is very large relative to the estate: If the CGT arising from the deemed disposal exceeds 50% of the net value of the estate (calculated before the R3.5 million abatement), special relief provisions exist so that an executor is not automatically forced to sell estate assets purely to fund this tax — heirs or legatees may, in certain circumstances, accept liability for the tax debt rather than have the asset sold.
Source: SARS — Guide to the Individual ITR12 Return for Deceased and Insolvent Estates

Why this matters for estate planning: A large, low-base-cost asset (for example, a property or business interest held for many decades) can trigger a substantial CGT liability at death, entirely independent of the estate duty calculation above. Both should be considered together when estimating what an estate may ultimately owe.

Capital gains tax — complete guide → CGT calculator →

Frequently Asked Questions

Estate duty is levied at 20% on the dutiable value of an estate up to R30 million, and at 25% on the dutiable value exceeding R30 million. A basic abatement of R3.5 million is deducted from the net value of the estate before these rates are applied.
The basic abatement is R3,500,000. This amount is deducted from the net value of an estate (after other allowable deductions) to determine the dutiable value on which estate duty is calculated.
No. Property bequeathed to a surviving spouse is deducted in full from the net value of the estate, meaning no estate duty is payable on that portion. If the deceased's R3.5 million abatement is not fully used because most of the estate passes to the surviving spouse, the unused portion can roll over to the surviving spouse's own estate for use when they later die.
A marriage in community of property creates a single joint estate. When one spouse dies, the surviving spouse holds a 50% interest in the joint estate and may claim their half share. Only the deceased spouse's 50% portion is relevant when calculating their estate duty liability.
No. Benefits payable to the deceased from an approved retirement fund are excluded from the estate under Section 3(2)(i) of the Estate Duty Act — they do not form part of the estate's value for estate duty purposes at all.
No, they are two separate taxes. Estate duty is calculated on the net value of the estate using the R3.5 million abatement and 20%/25% rates. Capital gains tax (CGT) is a separate liability triggered by a deemed disposal of the deceased's assets immediately before death, calculated under normal CGT rules with a special increased R440,000 annual exclusion for the year of death. Both can apply to the same estate independently.

Related guides and tools

Related calculators

CGT calculator → Donations tax calculator → Income tax calculator →

Estate & donations guides

Estate duty — complete guide → Donations tax — complete guide → Deceased estates — tax guide →

Tools

Income tax calculator → Tax deadlines 2026/2027 →
← Back to: Estate & Donations Tax — Complete Guide

Sources:

  1. SARS — Estate Duty — sars.gov.za/types-of-tax/estate-duty/ (rates; abatement; what estate duty applies to)
  2. SARS — Tax Rates: Other Taxes — sars.gov.za/tax-rates/other-taxes/ (rate confirmation; related donations tax figures)
  3. SARS — FAQs: Deceased Estates Income Tax and Estate Duty (Issue 4) — sars.gov.za (community of property; retirement fund exclusion; exclusions vs exemptions)
  4. SARS — Guide to the Individual ITR12 Return for Deceased and Insolvent Estates (IT-GEN-06-G01) — sars.gov.za (CGT at death; R440,000 year-of-death exclusion; 50%-of-estate relief provision)
  5. Estate Duty Act 45 of 1955 — Section 3 (what is included/excluded); Section 4 (deductions); Section 4A (abatement and rollover)
  6. SARS — CGT rates page — sars.gov.za/tax-rates/income-tax/capital-gains-tax-cgt/ (updated 25 February 2026 — R440,000 year-of-death exclusion)

Last reviewed: June 2026. Next review: after Budget Speech February 2027 — verify the abatement and rates, though these have remained stable for several consecutive years.