Tag: Tax Consulting SA

In a recent Tax Court Judgment handed down on 25 February 2022, the court found in favour of an unnamed taxpayer, admonishing South African Revenue Service (SARS) for their persistent disregard for the time limits prescribed in the rules promulgated under Section 103 of the Tax Administration Act, 28 of 2011 (the Rules).

The question of 'Selective Prosecution' has been asked since 2007 when the South African Revenue Service (SARS) started using lifestyle audits on private individuals. The selection basis, was the means of the individual, in contrast to their standard of living, and was conducted on individuals where there was a suspicion of criminal activity.

The Budget Review 2022 was far from a 'good news' budget for South Africans working abroad (expats). For the 5th consecutive year, there has been changes proposed that clearly indicate that SARS is still targeting expats and view them as low-hanging fruit to boost revenue collection.

The Minister of Finance, Enoch Godongwana, delivered the 2022 Budget to parliament. Discussed below are key highlights from the 2022 Budget Review:

Property practitioners, including estate agents, candidate estate agents, and property managing agents (the agents), have for years been regulated by the Estate Agency Affairs Act, 112 of 1976 (EAA). However, this is soon to change with the enactment of the Property Practitioners Act, 22 of 2019 (the Act), signed into law by President Cyril Ramaphosa, and with an effective commencement date of 01 February 2022.

The transition from the old emigration regime to the current regime - ceasing of tax residency, came with some relief. However, there were some silent changes that went unnoticed. The most notable change has been the requirement of a SARS Tax Compliance Status (TCS PIN) for every capital transfer a Non-Resident/Non-Tax Resident makes to offshore.

The President has given effect to the 2021 tax proposals by signing three tax Acts into law. On 14 January 2022, the President gave his assent to the Rates and Monetary Amounts and Amendment of Revenue Laws Act No. 19 of 2021 (Rates Act), the Taxation Laws Amendment Act No. 20 of 2021 (TLAA) and the Tax Administration Laws Amendment Act No. 21 of 2021 (TALAA). These Acts were promulgated on 19 January 2021.

The South African Revenue Service (SARS) has made evident its no-nonsense stance in media statements over the preceding months and shown that actions speak louder than words in light of the recent judgements of the Pretoria High Court on the state capture loot, and Zuma’s tax records.

Expatriates and those with plans to emigrate will be relieved to learn that the proposal to impose an exit tax on retirement interests will be withdrawn. In presenting their Draft Response Document on the 2021 Draft Tax Bills, National Treasury and SARS confirmed that the proposal will not be included in final Taxation Laws Amendment Bill that will be tabled in tomorrow’s Medium Term Budget.

In recent weeks we have seen first-hand the powers of SARS in holding taxpayers criminally liable where their tax affairs are not in order.