Salary Determinations for Public Office-Bearers for 2026/27

Posted 10 November 2026 Written by Acts Online
Category Government & Constitutional Law

Brought to you by SAnews: Remuneration adjustments ranging from 3.5% to 4% have been determined for public office-bearers across the executive, legislative, judicial, and traditional leadership structures for the 2026/27 financial year, effective from 1 April 2026.

In terms of the Remuneration of Public Office Bearers Act, No. 20 of 1998, read with section 219 of the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa, 1996, the President finalised the annual remuneration determinations following formal recommendations issued by the Independent Commission for the Remuneration of Public Office-Bearers. The statutory Commission operates under the Independent Commission for the Remuneration of Public Office-Bearers Act, No. 92 of 1997 to review and recommend remuneration, allowances, and benefits.

The remuneration increases have been differentiated across two percentage tiers:

  • 3.5% increase: Members of the National Executive (Ministers and Deputy Ministers), Members of the National Assembly, Permanent Delegates to the National Council of Provinces (NCOP), Provincial Premiers, Members of Executive Councils (MECs), and Members of Provincial Legislatures (MPLs).
  • 4.0% increase: Judges of the Constitutional Court, judges of the Supreme Court of Appeal and High Courts, magistrates, traditional leaders, members of the National and Provincial Houses of Traditional and Khoi-San Leaders, and office-bearers of Chapter 9 state institutions supporting constitutional democracy.

The Commission arrived at its recommendations following an assessment of fiscal affordability, historical and forecast consumer price inflation, wage settlement indices across the public sector, and prevailing economic constraints.

What this means for you, your business, or your clients

  • For yourself: No personal compliance obligations; professionals providing payroll, accounting, or advisory services to public sector entities and statutory bodies must update remuneration baseline bands from 1 April 2026.
  • For your business: Payroll administrators and finance teams handling institutions subject to statutory remuneration schedules must implement the relevant 3.5% or 4.0% adjustment retroactively or from the effective date, factoring in revised PAYE deductions and fringe benefit calculations.
  • For your clients: Public office-bearer clients, judicial officers, and entities bound by statutory salary schedules must align their tax planning, pension fund contributions, and disclosure requirements in accordance with the gazetted remuneration levels.

Originally published at https://www.sanews.gov.za/south-africa/president-ramaphosa-determines-salary-increases-public-office-bearers

The views expressed herein are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Acts Online. Acts Online accepts no responsibility for the accuracy, completeness or fairness of the article, nor does the information contained herein constitute advice, legal or otherwise.