Mastering Record Keeping: How to Meet SARS’s Electronic Documentation Standards
Too often, taxpayers seem to forget that the most important aspect of dealing with SARS is to ensure that they can discharge their burden of proof. As a taxpayer, it is on you to provide SARS with the relevant material that, on a balance of probabilities, supports your position. Taxpayers are required to retain relevant […]
Is a maintenance payment a ‘donation’?
Helping someone out may be exempt from donations tax—but as always, the devil is in the detail… Donations tax is one of those strange taxes where people often question its existence. After all, why would SARS be so mean as to want to tax someone’s generosity? The main reason is estate duty—or, more specifically, the […]
Testamentary trusts still have their place
How you can protect your assets from predators—including SARS Trusts have received a lot of bad press over the past few years, what with SARS taking a dim view of the use of trusts as a means of avoiding tax. A 2008 case involving a property trust, where the beneficiaries were changed in the hope […]
Securing your business’s future: FICA compliance in South Africa made simple
To thrive in South Africa’s ever-changing economic landscape, it is crucial to have a thorough understanding of your regulatory responsibilities, including compliance with the Financial Intelligence Centre Act (FICA). Recognised not just as an additional requirement to your current protocols, but rather as a fundamental component in upholding your business’s integrity, FICA ensures transparency and […]
Flying towards a tax saving: Double Tax Agreement, or financial emigration?
Having visited over 12 international locations in 2022, and engaging with South African expatriates, we can attest to a recent report issued by the United Nations, which found that around 900 000 South Africans are already living and working overseas—and indeed, this may well be an understatement. The common misconception amongst expatriates, however, is that getting […]
What you need to know regarding home office expenses
The way we work on a day-to-day basis changed significantly since the Covid-19 pandemic with many employers adopting a more hybrid working model. This new economic environment and new ways of working created an environment where SARS and taxpayers had to adapt accordingly with new focus on salaried employees working from home to claim certain […]
Render unto Caesar: Shares and the SARS slice
Whether you are a share trader or a long-term investor, when you make a profit, SARS will want its slice of the pie Ever since biblical times, there has been a tug-of-war between governments trying to extract as much as possible from their citizens in the form of taxes, and individuals trying to keep as […]
How SARS catches tax-dodgers
SARS auditors employ methods that most people wouldn’t have even considered How does the South African Revenue Service (SARS) catch those who do not contribute their fair share to state coffers? Here are some tests that SARS auditors perform to see if you are being somewhat economical with the truth. Comparing VAT returns to your […]
Follow due process, yes – but be reasonable!
Condonation for the late filing of legal documentation depends on whether the interests of justice will be served by the court granting such condonation In taxpayer M v CSARS (Case Number VAT1826) heard by the Gauteng Tax court, Windell, J handed down an important decision regarding the validity of a default notice (and the resultant […]
VAT treatment of irrecoverable debts
What happens to the VAT that was paid over to SARS? Vendors often provide goods or services to clients on credit. In the current economic climate, clients are more likely to acquire goods or services on credit and may thereafter be unable to settle these debts. Other factors, for example disputes, may also result in […]
