Terms of service
Last updated 30 September 2026
These terms govern your use of TagXBRL, a service that converts annual financial statements into the inline XBRL (iXBRL) format the Companies and Intellectual Property Commission (CIPC) requires for annual returns.
The service is operated by HTCO Shared Services, registration 2025/343065/07, of Block D, Stoneridge Office Park, 8 Greenstone Place, Stoneridge Drive, Modderfontein, 1644, South Africa. Using the service means you accept these terms.
1. What the service does
You upload a signed set of annual financial statements as a PDF. TagXBRL reads the figures, produces an iXBRL document tagged to the CIPC taxonomy, and submits it to the CIPC validation service. You receive the iXBRL file, a validation report, and a side-by-side comparison of the tagged figures against your source document.
2. What the service does not do
This is a conversion tool, not an accounting, audit, review or advisory service. In particular:
- We do not audit, review or otherwise assure the statements you upload, and we express no opinion on them.
- We do not check whether your statements comply with IFRS, IFRS for SMEs, the Companies Act, or any other framework.
- We do not prepare or submit your annual return. The iXBRL file is yours to file with the CIPC.
- The figures in the output are the figures you supplied. You remain responsible for their accuracy, and for reviewing the output before you file it.
A CIPC "ACCEPT" verdict means the file is structurally valid and its tags are recognised. It is not a statement that the numbers are right, and it is not an approval of your financial statements.
3. Price and payment
Conversions cost R999.00 per filing, covering the first 20 pages, plus R10.00 per page thereafter. Prices are in South African rand.
HTCO Shared Services is not registered for VAT, so no VAT is charged and none is shown. The price quoted is the price you pay.
The service runs on a credit balance. You top up your account, and each conversion draws against that balance. You are charged only when a conversion succeeds — if the process fails before producing an output, no fee is taken.
Payments are handled by Payfast. Your card details are entered on Payfast's own payment page and are never sent to, seen by, or stored by us.
Credit balances and refunds
- Unused credit remains on your account and does not expire.
- Credit is not transferable between accounts.
- If a conversion is charged in error, tell us and we will credit the fee back to your balance.
- Unused credit can be refunded on request — press Request a refund under Top up, or email us. Refunds are processed within 2–3 working days, to the card or account the credit was paid from. Bank charges on the refund are for your account.
4. How long we keep your files
This is the part most likely to matter to you later, so it is stated plainly and the dates are shown in the service itself.
| What | Kept for | Then |
|---|---|---|
| Your iXBRL output and validation report | 12 months from the conversion | deleted |
| The AFS PDF you uploaded | 30 days after a successful conversion | deleted |
| The conversion record — company, fee, verdict; no files | 5 years | retained as an accounting record |
The expiry date for each conversion is shown next to it on your conversions list. Download and keep anything you need. Once a file is deleted it cannot be recovered, and re-converting is a new paid conversion.
Twelve months is intended to cover an audit that runs late, a CIPC query, or a re-download when you prepare next year's comparatives. Your own obligation to retain your financial records is separate, longer, and yours.
5. Your account
- Keep your password to yourself. You are responsible for what is done through your account.
- Tell us promptly if you think someone else has access to it.
- You may only upload statements you are entitled to upload — your own company's, or a client's where you have their authority.
- Do not attempt to disrupt the service, access another account, or use the service to process anything unlawful.
6. Availability
We do not promise uninterrupted availability. The service depends on the CIPC's validation service, which is outside our control and is sometimes unavailable; a conversion cannot be validated while it is down.
We may change or discontinue the service. If we discontinue it, we will give reasonable notice and a window to download your files.
7. Liability
Nothing here excludes liability that cannot lawfully be excluded, including under the Consumer Protection Act where it applies to you.
Subject to that, our total liability arising from your use of the service is limited to the fees you paid for the conversion the claim relates to. We are not liable for indirect or consequential loss, including penalties, lost profits, or the cost of a late filing.
Filing deadlines are yours to meet. Leave time to review the output and to re-submit if the CIPC rejects it. We cannot be responsible for a late annual return.
8. Suspension and closure
We may suspend or close an account that breaches these terms. You may close yours at any time by asking us. On closure we refund any unused credit and delete your files, subject to records we must keep for accounting purposes.
9. Changes to these terms
We may update these terms. The date at the top shows when they last changed. A change to the retention periods will not shorten the window for conversions already paid for — those keep the period they were sold under.
10. Governing law
These terms are governed by the law of the Republic of South Africa, and the South African courts have jurisdiction.
11. Contact
HTCO Shared Services, Block D, Stoneridge Office Park, 8 Greenstone Place, Stoneridge Drive, Modderfontein, 1644, South Africa. Email henno@htcogrp.com.