The new methods of granting a measure of tax relief on the contributions made to medical schemes will be implemented from March 2012, and is expected to be followed by similar amendments to the taxing of medical expenses in 2013

Business owners’ are under pressure to keep their businesses alive – maximise profit, whilst at the same time minimise costs without this being a detriment to operations. The monitoring of this vital process is called accounting – which incorporates the analysis and management of financial statements detailing assets owned and debts owed.

Failure to comply with the Financial Advisory and Intermediary Services Act (FAIS) can result in hefty fines or possible closure by the Financial Services Board (FSB) for any Financial Services Provider (FSP) or financial intermediary who does not ensure an accurate record of all services rendered or advice offered, and securely store the information for up to five years.

Local assets and liabilities must be individually listed, eg fixed properties, shares in private companies, mortgage bonds and bank overdrafts. The local assets and liabilities must be reflected at cost. The foreign assets and liabilities are translated to rand using the exchange rate as at the end of the year of assessment.