CIPC and SARS hold separate records of your company and neither updates the other. Change a director at CIPC and SARS still has the old one. Move offices and update SARS and CIPC still shows the old address. The mismatch causes failed tender screening, blocked eFiling, and statutory correspondence going to a person who left the business years ago — which is how deadlines pass unnoticed.
Two institutions, two databases, no connection between them. Every filing you make has to be made twice.
What each one holds
| CIPC | SARS | |
|---|---|---|
| Registered address | Yes — the legal service address | Yes — its own record, updated separately |
| Directors | Yes, on the CoR39 | Yes, its own record |
| Registered representative | Not a CIPC concept | Yes — the person authorised to act |
| Financial year end | Yes | Yes, separately |
| Company name | The registered name | Its own record of the name |
| Bank details | No | Yes, with verification |
| Shareholding | No — only beneficial ownership | No |
Two of these matter more than the rest: the registered address and the registered representative. Both determine whether you find out about a problem in time to fix it.
The four mismatches that actually cost you
1. The registered representative is someone who left
The most damaging by a distance.
SARS recognises one person as authorised to act for the company. Where that person has resigned, been removed, or died, SARS keeps sending everything to them. Assessments, verification requests, final demands.
You stop receiving SARS correspondence while the deadlines keep running. This is behind a large share of unnoticed enforcement, including third-party appointments on bank accounts.
Filing a CoR39 at CIPC does not change it. It is a separate RAV01 process on eFiling, and it can take up to 21 business days. See what is a SARS registered representative.
2. Different addresses
CIPC posts deregistration warnings to the registered office. SARS posts to its own record. A company that updated one and not the other is missing half its statutory correspondence — and will not know which half.
See how to change your registered address at CIPC.
3. Directors that do not agree
A director who resigned two years ago still showing at SARS, or a new director SARS has never heard of. Bank FICA reviews and corporate onboarding check both, and a mismatch reads as a company that does not know who runs it.
4. Different financial year ends
Change your year end at CIPC and forget SARS, and SARS expects returns on the old cycle — provisional tax notices for periods that no longer exist, and assessments against a year end the company no longer has. See how to change your company's financial year end.
Where the mismatch surfaces
CSD registration and tender screening. CSD pulls directly from CIPC, SARS and your bank. Any inconsistency between the three fails the registration or the bid — and you usually find out on the closing day.
Bank FICA reviews. Banks verify directors and beneficial owners against the registers. A mismatch turns a routine review into a hold on the account.
Corporate supplier onboarding. Large customers run the same checks.
Tax compliance status. A blocked eFiling profile, because the registered representative is wrong, means outstanding returns you cannot file and a status that reads non-compliant.
Due diligence, where inconsistent records signal that statutory housekeeping generally has not been done.
The rule: every change is two filings
Whenever anything changes, ask both questions.
| Change | CIPC | SARS |
|---|---|---|
| Director appointed or removed | CoR39 within 10 business days | RAV01 — and change the registered representative if it was them |
| Registered address | CoR21.1 | RAV01 |
| Company name | Name reservation, special resolution, MOI amendment | RAV01 — the tax numbers stay the same |
| Financial year end | Notice to CIPC | RAV01 |
| Bank details | Nothing | RAV01, with verification |
| Shareholding | Beneficial ownership within 10 business days | Nothing directly |
Do CIPC first where the change originates there, let it process, then update SARS — and then confirm both records agree by pulling a CIPC disclosure certificate and checking your eFiling profile. See what is a CIPC disclosure certificate.
An annual reconciliation worth doing
Fifteen minutes, once a year, in your anniversary month.
1. Pull a CIPC disclosure certificate. Directors, registered address, status, financial year end.
2. Open your SARS eFiling profile. Registered representative, address, banking details, year end.
3. Compare them, line by line.
4. Check the registered representative is a real person who still works here and actually receives the correspondence.
5. Fix whatever differs, at both ends.
6. Check CSD and COIDA reflect the same position, if you tender or employ.
Do it in the anniversary month so it happens alongside the annual return and beneficial ownership, rather than as a separate thing nobody remembers. See what is your company's anniversary date.
Frequently asked questions
Does CIPC update SARS when I change my company details? No. CIPC and SARS hold separate records and neither updates the other. Every change has to be made at both, separately.
What happens if my CIPC and SARS records do not match? CSD registration and tender screening fail, bank FICA reviews stall, corporate onboarding is delayed, and statutory correspondence goes to the wrong place — so deadlines pass without you knowing.
Do I need to tell SARS when I change directors? Yes. CIPC's CoR39 does not update SARS. Update the SARS record separately through the RAV01 process, and change the registered representative if the departing director held that role.
What is the most damaging mismatch? A registered representative who has left the business. SARS keeps sending assessments, verification requests and final demands to that person, so the company stops receiving correspondence while deadlines keep running.
Does changing my company name change my tax numbers? No. Income tax, VAT and PAYE numbers stay the same. Only the name on the SARS record is updated, through the RAV01 process.
Why does CSD registration keep failing? Because CSD pulls directly from CIPC, SARS and your bank, and any inconsistency between the three causes a failure. CIPC and SARS housekeeping is the real prerequisite for CSD.
How often should I check that the records agree? Once a year, in your anniversary month, alongside the annual return and beneficial ownership filing. It takes about fifteen minutes.
Reconcile them once a year
Nobody discovers a records mismatch at a convenient moment. They discover it on a tender closing day, or in a bank review, or when a final demand surfaces that was sent to someone who left in 2023.
Smartbook keeps the CIPC and SARS records aligned for clients, files at both ends when anything changes, and reconciles them annually alongside the annual return.
Sort out your SARS registered representative →
Last reviewed: 2 August 2026. Written by the Smartbook team — SAIPA and SAICA accredited, SARS registered tax practitioners. CIPC and SARS processes and timelines change from time to time — confirm current requirements before filing. General guidance, not advice on your circumstances.
Primary sources: CIPC · SARS · Central Supplier Database · Companies Act 71 of 2008