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Why is the Edit or Revoke button greyed out on my certificate?

In short: Once a certificate has been submitted to SARS in an IT3(d) file, the Edit Certificate button is locked (its tooltip says the certificate has been submitted to SARS). Editing is what's blocked — you can still Revoke the certificate and issue a new, corrected one.

Why Edit is locked

A Section 18A certificate that's already been included in an IT3(d) submission to SARS can't be changed, because SARS has the original figures on record. ActiveDonor disables the Edit Certificate button and shows: "This Section 18A cannot be edited as it has been submitted to SARS. Please revoke it and re-issue a new one." That's why the button looks greyed out, disabled or won't click.

Edit vs Revoke — what's the difference?

  • Edit changes the details on the existing certificate, keeping the same number. This is the action that gets locked after submission.
  • Revoke cancels the certificate (this is also how you "delete" or "cancel" one). Revoking is not blocked by a SARS submission — you can always revoke. A reason is required.

So if you need to correct a submitted certificate, you don't edit it — you revoke it and issue a fresh one.

How to revoke instead

  1. Open the certificate (the Section 18A Certificate # page).
  2. Click Revoke Certificate (not Edit, which is locked).
  3. Enter a reason — a reason is required.
  4. Confirm. The certificate's number is prefixed REVOKED- and it's soft-deleted.
  5. Issue a new, corrected certificate to replace it.

📌 Note: If you revoke a certificate that was already reported to SARS, you must also declare the revocation in a revoked IT3(d) submission.

Common issues

What you see What it means How to fix it
Edit Certificate is greyed out. The certificate has been submitted to SARS, so editing is locked. Revoke it and issue a new one — editing is blocked, revoking is not.
The Revoke button won't work without a reason. A reason is mandatory to revoke. Enter a reason, then confirm.
  • Revoking a Section 18A certificate
  • Section 18A issued and revoked reports