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. […]
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 […]
Non-resident sellers of immovable property
Section 35A of the Income Tax Act[1] came into effect on 1 September 2007 and sets out the capital gains tax consequences of the sale of immovable property situated in South Africa in instances where the seller is not a South African tax resident. In terms of these provisions, the purchaser of the immovable property […]
2018: A year in tax
As 2018 has come to an end, we reflect on some of the significant highlights (and lowlights) of the 2018 tax year. Davis Tax Committee concludes its work The Davis Tax Committee (DTC) was appointed by the Minister of Finance in 2013, to inquire into the role of the tax system in the promotion of […]
Helpful tax resources
South African taxes are inherently complex and often involve interpretation, consulting and in exceptional cases, a fair amount of educated guessing on exactly what the legislature intended when the various acts were drafted. However, in order to assist taxpayers through the maze of information, there are some very helpful aids available to taxpayers and tax […]
Special trusts
The Income Tax Act[1] includes specific provisions for “special trusts”. These trusts are taxed on the same sliding scale applicable to natural persons, which could be lower than the current 45% flat rate applicable to conventional trusts. Capital gains tax (“CGT”) is also lower within a special trust, at a maximum rate of 18% compared […]
Rating formula for farming income
The Income Tax Act[1] provides for a natural person who derives income from farming operations to elect (within three months after a year of assessment) to be subject to tax according to a rating formula, instead of the normal income tax tables. The reason for this option is the (sometimes) abnormal and unpredictable way in […]
2018 Tax Season: SARS shortens submission period
The annual tax filing season is upon us and acting SARS Commissioner, Mark Kingon, announced that the season will open on 1 July 2018 for eFilers. SARS branches will assist taxpayers from 2 July 2018. The filing season will then end on 31 October. To improve efficiency, the season will be shortened by three weeks, […]