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The Common Sense analysed twelve years of South African Revenue Service data on female and male taxpayers. The analysis produced three findings: total taxpayer growth has largely stagnated; earners within the emerging middle class have barely expanded; and the strongest gains have occurred among high earners, led predominantly by women.

The chart below shows taxpayer numbers for women and men, the combined total, and each group’s growth from 2012 to 2024. 

Between 2012 and 2024, South Africa’s individual taxpayer base grew by 24.4%, bringing the total number of taxpayers to more than seven million people (about 11% of the population). While a 24.4% increase sounds substantial, when spread over twelve years it amounts to growth of less than 2.0% a year. That sluggish expansion broadly reflects South Africa’s weak economic growth, which was below 2.0% in most years over the period. For context, if the South African economy had sustained a 5% annual growth over that same period, the taxpayer base would have expanded by approximately 80%.

One encouraging trend is the steady rise in female taxpayers, whose numbers grew by 36.8% over the period.

The chart below tracks how women have grown within four broad income tiers in South Africa, from emerging middle-class to high earners. Rendered as an index starting at 100 in 2012, it allows groups ranging from a few thousand to over a million people to be directly compared (for instance, a reading of 150 indicates 50% growth, while 90 reflects a 10% decline). The income tiers are adjusted for inflation and economic growth, so each one represents the same standard of living over the period.

The first pattern to note in the chart is the sluggish growth among women earning between R120 000 and R350 000 annually, a bracket that broadly encompasses the emerging middle class. This group grew by just 18% over the period, despite being the single largest category of female taxpayers. It includes workers such as teachers, nurses, police officers, administrative staff, and junior professionals. This slow growth again stems directly from broader economic stagnation, particularly the erosion of South Africa’s manufacturing sector, which historically served as a vital bridge into this income group.

The second pattern is the rapid growth in the number of women across the top three income tiers, earning R350 000 or more a year. These tiers broadly include professionals and other highly skilled workers in South Africa’s knowledge economy. These gains reflect women’s significant educational progress; women have surpassed men in high school completion and university enrolment, which has opened access to better-paid, skilled work. This also aligns with a broader shift in the structure of South Africa’s economy where high-skill industries account for the largest share of the country's output.

The men’s index in the chart below broadly follows the same pattern as the women’s, with growth in the number of middle to higher earners far outpacing that of the emerging middle class. Most striking, however, is how the emerging middle class growth has completely flatlined. 

Poor economic policies have stunted the growth of South Africa’s tax base, particularly among the emerging middle class. While higher income groups have expanded, especially among women, they remain a small minority of taxpayers. These groups nevertheless generate the vast majority of personal income tax, which accounts for about 30.0% of total government tax revenue. South Africa remains heavily dependent on a narrow pool of higher earners, while the emerging middle class that should broaden its tax base has barely grown.