Emigrating while retaining your property?
The exodus of South Africans to foreign jurisdictions has been well publicised, and due to this, much has been written about the so-called “exit tax” that applies when one ceases to be a tax resident in South Africa, as well as matters relating to foreign employment income earned. However, what is often overlooked is what happens when you emigrate […]
Re-allocation of surplus retirement fund assets
Binding Class Rulings (BCR) are issued in response to applications by a specific class of taxpayers (usually persons that will have the same tax consequences apply to them from a transaction) and clarifies how the Commissioner for SARS would interpret and apply the provisions of the tax laws relating to a specific proposed transaction. BCR 068 determines the very technical consequences of transferring surplus retirement fund assets between funds and allocating […]
Clearing loan accounts through dividends
In terms of the Tax Administration Act, the South African Revenue Service (“SARS”) can issue, in response to an application, Binding Private Rulings (“BPR”) and clarifies how the Commissioner would interpret and apply the provisions of the tax laws relating to a specific proposed transaction. BPR 346 determines the income tax and dividends tax consequences of the redemption of intra-group loans […]
Bursaries and scholarships: The tax rules are changing
Over the past several years, many employers and employees have made use of the beneficial tax treatment of bursary and scholarship schemes, as provided for in the Income Tax Act. The Act contains provisions that provide an exemption in respect of bona fide bursaries or scholarships granted by employers to employees or relatives of qualifying […]
The give and take of share transfers
Many business transactions are concluded in terms of section 42 of the Income Tax Act. The section essentially allows a transfer of an asset by a person to a company, in exchange for equity shares in that company, allowing for tax neutral transaction. The South African Revenue Service has recently issued Binding Private Ruling 339, relating to a transaction in which listed shares are transferred to a collective investment scheme (CIS) in exchange for participatory interests […]
When is Capital Gains Tax not incurred?
Section 9HA of the Income Tax Act deals with deemed disposals by a deceased person. This section of the Act often causes some confusion, especially where there are heirs or legatees other than the surviving spouse. In terms of the provision, a deceased person is treated as having disposed of his or her assets at […]
Tax liability in financial emigration
Section 9H of the Income Tax Act deals with matters relating to the cessation of residency in South Africa. This section essentially states that where a person that is a resident ceases to be a resident during any year of assessment, that person must be treated as having disposed of his assets on the date […]
Section 7C of the Income Tax Act explained
What is section 7C? This section of the Income Tax Act is an anti-avoidance measure aimed at transactions between connected persons and trusts, where a trust is funded by low interest or interest-free loans. This is usually done to ensure that assets form part of the trust’s capital, and the funder (who is usually a […]
Are my donations being taxed?
BPR 338 deals with the tax treatment of payments made to a Public Benefit Organisation (PBO) at a fundraising event, under section 30 of the Income Tax Act. The ruling is essentially an interpretation of section 18A of the Act and seeks to clarify the situation for PBOs and funders. In terms of the transaction, […]
What happens during liquidation?
The South African Revenue Service (“SARS”) issued Binding Private Ruling 336 on 6 December 2019. In terms of this ruling, a listed resident company (“the Company”) previously granted a loan to its wholly-owned resident subsidiary (“the Subsidiary”) in order for the Subsidiary to acquire shares in the Company. The Company subsequently decided to deregister the […]
