Die salarisadministrateur gaan die betaaldatum na.

Because the verb here is nagaan, which is a separable verb in Afrikaans.

In a main clause, the verb splits:

• the finite part goes to the normal verb position near the beginning: gaan
• the particle goes to the end: na

So:

• Die salarisadministrateur gaan die betaaldatum na.
  = The payroll administrator checks/reviews the pay date.

The full dictionary form is nagaan.

This is very similar to separable verbs in Dutch and German.

Not in this sentence.

Although gaan can be used as a future marker in Afrikaans, here it is part of the separable verb nagaan.

So this sentence is not primarily:

• is going to check

It is:

• checks / reviews / goes over

A useful comparison:

• Die salarisadministrateur gaan die betaaldatum na.
  = The payroll administrator checks the pay date.

• Die salarisadministrateur gaan die betaaldatum nagaan.
  = The payroll administrator is going to check the pay date.

In the second sentence, gaan is the future helper verb, and nagaan stays together at the end.

The basic form is nagaan.

Common meanings of nagaan include:

• to check
• to examine
• to review
• to verify
• to go over

In this sentence, it most naturally means something like check or review.

So the structure is:

• gaan ... na = split form of nagaan

No. Not in this sentence.

As an independent word, na can often mean:

• to
• after

But here it is not acting as a separate preposition. It is the second part of the separable verb nagaan.

So you should understand gaan ... na together as one verb meaning check/review, not as go after or go to.

Because die is the definite article in Afrikaans, meaning the.

This sentence has two definite nouns:

• die salarisadministrateur = the payroll administrator
• die betaaldatum = the pay date

So both need die.

A very useful point for learners: Afrikaans does not have different forms like English the vs gendered articles in some other languages. Die is used very broadly.

No gender, and not clearly number by itself.

Afrikaans articles are much simpler than in many European languages:

• die = the for singular and plural
• 'n = a / an

So die does not tell you whether the noun is masculine, feminine, or neuter. Afrikaans nouns do not work that way.

Also, die can be singular or plural, so you use context to understand the number. In this sentence, both nouns are singular.

Salarisadministrateur is a compound noun.

It is built from:

• salaris = salary
• administrateur = administrator

Together:

• salarisadministrateur = salary administrator / payroll administrator

Afrikaans often combines words into one long noun, just like Dutch and German do. English often writes these ideas as two words, but Afrikaans commonly writes them as one compound.

It is another compound noun:

• betaal = pay
• datum = date

So betaaldatum literally means pay date or payment date.

Depending on context, English might translate it as:

• pay date
• payday
• payment date

Again, this is a very normal Afrikaans compound.

The sentence follows standard Afrikaans main-clause word order:

• Die salarisadministrateur = subject
• gaan = finite verb
• die betaaldatum = object
• na = separated verb particle

So the pattern is:

Subject + finite verb + object + particle

This is why the sentence looks like:

Die salarisadministrateur gaan die betaaldatum na.

You cannot normally keep nagaan together in this kind of simple main clause unless you are using it as an infinitive.

A very common past form in Afrikaans is the perfect tense with het.

So:

• Die salarisadministrateur het die betaaldatum nagegaan.
  = The payroll administrator checked the pay date.

Notice what happens:

• het is the helper verb
• nagegaan is the past participle

The separable verb is no longer split in the same way as in the simple present. Instead, it appears as nagegaan.

You would use 'n:

• 'n salarisadministrateur gaan die betaaldatum na.

That means:

• A payroll administrator checks the pay date.

So:

• die = the
• 'n = a / an

Remember that 'n is written with a lowercase letter even at the beginning of a sentence in standard spelling, and the next word is capitalized if needed:

• 'n Salarisadministrateur ...

Yes.

Die salarisadministrateur gaan die betaaldatum na is a present-tense sentence.

Depending on context, English might translate the present tense in different ways:

• The payroll administrator checks the pay date.
• The payroll administrator is checking the pay date.

Afrikaans often uses the simple present where English chooses either simple present or present continuous. Context tells you which is more natural.

Yes, that is a very helpful way to think about it.

English has combinations like:

• check over
• look up
• go through

Afrikaans nagaan behaves somewhat similarly:

• it has a main verbal element
• it can split in a sentence
• the second part may move to the end

So if you are an English speaker, it can help to treat gaan ... na as one unit, just as you would learn an English phrasal verb as one meaning.