SARS is empowered by section 40 of the Tax Administration Act, 2011 (“TAA”) to select a taxpayer for audit “on…
regular – tax
Can SARS deduct tax debts from your bank account?
Section 179 of the Tax Administration Act, 2011 allows SARS to issue a notice to a person who holds or…
At a loss – Treasury’s proposal to limit the use of assessed tax losses
By Greg Boy, Senior Manager, Tax Consulting at Mazars 11 March 2020: In his recent Budget Speech, Minister Mboweni proposed…
A tax benefit for keeping employees incentivised & motivated
Section 11(a) of the Income Tax Act allows a taxpayer to deduct expenditure for purposes of determining taxable income if…
Determining the Donations Tax threshold
Subject to any applicable exemption, donations tax is payable on the value of any property disposed of under any donation.…
Change to expatriate tax exemption in March 2020
On the 1 March 2020 an amendment to the foreign employment income exemption comes into operation. There have been misperceptions…
When consultancy services become a taxable fringe benefit
The world-renowned German motor vehicle manufacturer BMW has an international business policy which requires employees to work for a short…
Most favoured nation clauses
“Most favoured nation” clauses can be found in Double Taxation Agreements (DTA). These clauses are essentially where the tax treatment…
The sheer folly of doing nothing
A taxpayer who disputes a tax assessment has processes available in the Tax Administration Act, 2011 (“Act”) to contest the…
Tax season communication toolkit
Take note of the tax season toolkit for disseminating to our stakeholders. Tax tip #1 Not everyone has to file…
Non-profit companies: get your PBO application right
There are tax benefits for registering a non-profit organisation as a Public Benefit Organisation (PBO) with the South African Revenue…
Gift cards and the deferral of tax liability
The age-old question of whether moneys were ‘received’ by the tax taxpayer within the meaning of gross income was recently…
Imposing penalties for understatements
In addition to the tax payable, SARS can impose penalties on a taxpayer for an “understatement.” In a standard case,…
Knowing your tax compliance status
There are many reasons why a taxpayer may want to know their tax compliance status. A taxpayer may, for example,…
The test for a simulated transaction revisited
A taxpayer may organise his financial affairs in such a way as to pay the least tax permissible. Our courts…
To refund VAT or not to refund, that is the question
Can SARS refuse to pay a VAT refund on grounds that income tax is due? This is the question which…
Treasury’s possible challenges following the VAT Panel report
14 August 2018: The recommendations put forward by the review panel on the zero-rating of certain items for Value-Added Tax…
VAT zero-rating review: Where are we and what can we expect?
30 July 2018: According to National Treasury, feedback from the review panel, led by Professor Ingrid Woolard, on the zero-rating…
Investors in unit trusts could expect more taxes
23 July 2018: In the recently published draft Taxation Laws Amendment Bill (draft TLAB), Treasury appears to have taken a…
Taxpayer’s Rights During SARS Audit
A taxpayer who is subject to a tax audit has certain rights to engage with SARS, which includes the right…
Overhaul of the VAT treatment of electronic services
When goods are imported into South Africa there are strict controls in place so that they may be subject to…
The VAT increase and the sale of residential property
An increase in the Value Added Tax (VAT) rate to 15% will come into effect on 1 April 2018. Generally,…
How will a 1% point increase in VAT impact the cost of credit for the average South African household?
With 1 April just around the corner, many South African households are concerned about the impact of the 1% increase…