July 7, 2020
Published by client-admin at July 7, 2020
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The purpose of double tax agreements (“DTA” or “treaty”) between the tax administrations of two countries is to enable the administrations to eliminate double taxation, where each country intends to levy a tax in respect of the same amount of personal income. South Africa has a very favourable treaty network across the world. Generally, the provisions of double tax agreements have preference over local legislation, so one needs to take notice when a court delivers judgment on a matter contained in a DTA. The Supreme Court in the United Kingdom (UK) recently delivered judgement in Fowler (Respondent) v Commissioners for […]
July 7, 2020
Published by client-admin at July 7, 2020
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The judgment deals with an application for rescission of a judgment by Barnard Labuschagne (Applicant), where SARS took judgment under the provisions of chapter 11 of the Tax Administration Act (TAA). SARS filed a certified statement in terms of Section 172 of the TAA with the Registrar of the Court, setting out an amount of liquid debt due by the Applicant in respect of PAYE, VAT, UIF and SDL, and payable to SARS. The Applicant is a law practice in the Western Cape and brought an application to rescind, based on various contentions. Over an extended time, the Applicant had […]
June 3, 2020
Published by client-admin at June 3, 2020
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Decisions of South Africa’s courts are an essential source of law. The courts uphold and enforce the Constitution and develop common law that is consistent with the values of the Constitution, and the spirit and purpose of the Bill of Rights. In a taxation context, court decisions assist in how legislation must be interpreted or confirm the rights and obligations of taxpayers and the South African Revenue Service alike. One, therefore, cannot appreciate the tax landscape, without having regard for the decisions of our courts. In SIP Project Managers (Pty) Ltd v CSARS (29 April 2020), the Gauteng Division of the High […]
June 3, 2020
Published by client-admin at June 3, 2020
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Becoming an entrepreneur is not as easy as waking up with an idea and having money thrown at you to turn it into a reality. Most successful entrepreneurs share the same sentiments – it takes many rejections and disappointments, and plenty of restarts. There are two things this article will explore; how to get startup capital, and how to manage it. 1. How to get the startup capital Your drive to become an entrepreneur should not be derived from wanting to have exactly what another entrepreneur has achieved. By virtue of your business idea being different, an opportunity to succeed […]
June 3, 2020
Published by client-admin at June 3, 2020
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Decisions of South Africa’s courts are an essential source of law. The courts uphold and enforce the Constitution and develop common law that is consistent with the values of the Constitution, and the spirit and purpose of the Bill of Rights. In a taxation context, court decisions assist in how legislation must be interpreted or confirm the rights and obligations of taxpayers and the South African Revenue Service alike. One, therefore, cannot appreciate the tax landscape, without having regard for the decisions of our courts. In CSARS v Pieters and others, the Supreme Court of Appeal (SCA) was tasked with deciding […]
June 3, 2020
Published by client-admin at June 3, 2020
Categories
Decisions of South Africa’s courts are an essential source of law. The courts uphold and enforce the Constitution and develop common law that is consistent with the values of the Constitution, and the spirit and purpose of the Bill of Rights. In a taxation context, court decisions assist in how legislation must be interpreted or confirm the rights and obligations of taxpayers and the South African Revenue Service alike. One, therefore, cannot appreciate the tax landscape, without having regard for the decisions of our courts. In the case of the Commissioner for SARS vs Public Protector (23 March 2020) in […]
May 11, 2020
Published by client-admin at May 11, 2020
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In terms of the Tax Administration Act, the South African Revenue Service (“SARS”) can issue Binding General Rulings (“BGR”) on matters of general interest or importance and clarifies the Commissioner’s application or interpretation of the tax law relating to these matters. BGR 50 provides clarity on the so-called “no-value” provision in respect of the rendering of transport services by an employer to its employees. Background Employers may often provide employees with transport services from their homes to the place of employment. Although it typically applies where places of work are remote, such as in the farming or mining sectors, the […]
May 11, 2020
Published by client-admin at May 11, 2020
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In a judgment delivered on 17 February 2020, the Gauteng High Court dealt with a matter regarding a “record of review”, and its relevance relating to a review application brought by the Applicant in the matter, Medtronic International (“Medtronic”), on the refusal by the South African Revenue Service’s (“SARS”) refusal to reduce certain interests and penalties imposed on its Value-Added Tax (“VAT”) statement of account. Medtronic was the victim of large-scale fraud to the value of approximately R460 million and as a result, fell behind with its tax obligations (the payment of VAT in particular). To correct the situation, it approached […]
May 11, 2020
Published by client-admin at May 11, 2020
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On 3 April 2020, the Supreme Court of Appeal delivered a judgement against Diageo South Africa (Pty) Ltd (“Diageo SA”) in a value-added tax (“VAT”) matter relating to the supply of advertising and promotion (“A&P”) services to various non-South African brand owners in the group. Diageo SA entered into an agreement with the foreign brand owners for the A&P of their products in South Africa. The brand owners invested in A&P to build and maintain brand recognition and generate sales by way of enhanced brand equity. The brand owners relied on Diageo SA to build their brands locally through A&P […]