SARS dispute: What are the reasons?
Generally, disputes with the South African Revenue Service (SARS) are the result of an assessment which has been issued by SARS to a taxpayer. An assessment is the determination of an amount of a tax liability or refund, by way of self-assessment by the taxpayer (such as in the case of VAT) or assessment by […]
Tax season 2019: Improvements made to eFiling
SARS recently released two media statements, in which it notes several improvements made to eFiling for the 2019 tax season, including the issue of customised notices indicating specific documents required in the event of an audit or verification and a simulated outcome issued before a taxpayer has filed. What is the tax season? Tax season […]
Capital gain: Calculating your foreign currency
With the fast approaching 2019 tax season, taxpayers who have realised a capital gain in a foreign currency should take note of the special rules that apply to the translation of those gains to Rand. Generally, there are two ways of translating a capital gain or loss into Rand – a “simple method” and a […]
VAT regulations dealing with the supply of electronic services
Since 2015, foreign suppliers of electronic services (such as audio-visual content, e-books etc.) in South Africa are deemed to operate an enterprise for VAT locally. Although the regime has been in place for several years, new regulations in this regard are continuously published, the latest being on 18 March 2019, with an effective date of […]
Taxpayers’ right to have disputes resolved
In a recent Tax Court decision[1], the Tax Court confirmed that taxpayers have a right to have their disputes resolved in a court of law as enunciated in section 34 of the Constitution. However, they cannot rely on this right when they are using delaying tactics to prevent the matter from being heard. In this […]
SARS scams
Education and awareness around identity theft, phishing and other frauds have become part of life globally. If nothing else, scamsters are innovative and keep trying new avenues of defrauding businesses and individuals. In South Africa, this is no exception, and there has been a rise in the number of scams where persons pretend to be […]
Recent court case on the imposition of understatement penalties
The Supreme Court of Appeal (“ZASCA”) delivered a judgment[1] on 26 February 2019 on the imposition of understatement penalties as provided for in the Tax Administration Act[2]. In this case, the taxpayer paid provisional income tax (“IT”) of R13.8 million to the South African Revenue Service (“SARS”) for the 2011 to 2014 years of assessment. […]
Tax implications of the variation of employment contracts
On 6 November 2018, the South African Revenue Service (“SARS”) issued a binding private ruling (“BPR 312”) in accordance with sections 78(1) and 87(2) of the Tax Administration Act.[1] This ruling set out the tax implications of varying employment contracts. Here the applicant (a resident company) previously entered a profit share arrangement with Mr X, […]
New filing requirements for insolvent taxpayers
The South African Revenue Service (“SARS”) has recently set out new procedures relating to the process around the filing of income tax returns relating to insolvency. The default position is that where the estate of a person is sequestrated, a separate return must be submitted for the period commencing on the first day of that […]
Admin penalties for outstanding Corporate Income Tax Returns
In general, all registered companies must submit corporate income tax (“CIT”) returns within 12 months of the end of the company’s financial year-end. This is applicable to all companies that are resident in South Africa, that receive source income in South Africa, or that maintain a permanent establishment or a branch in South Africa. On […]