Category Archives: SARS

South African Revenue Services

Start of PAYE Interim Reconciliation

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Special Voluntary Disclosure

Disclose offshore assets and income with SARS before 31 August 2017 to avoid penalties or criminal prosecution,

Trade Statistics

SARS released trade statistics for July 2017 that recorded a trade balance surplus of R8.99 billion due to exports of R93.09 billion and imports of R84.10 billion,

Automated PAYE Disputes

The new automated system will enable employers to lodge disputes via eFiling and electronically at any SARS branch,

eFiling downtime

Due to ongoing maintenance, eFiling will not be available on 19 May 2017 from 18h00 to 24h00. Apologies for the inconvenience.

Trade Statistics

SARS released trade statistics for June 2017 that recorded a trade balance surplus of R10.67 billion due to exports of R102.14 billion and imports of R91.47 billion,

Review of your tax return

If you’ve received a SMS or email from SARS to go to your nearest SARS branch, you will need to take the required documents with you,

Employer Interim Reconciliation

The Employer Interim Reconciliation will open on 15 September and run to 31 October 2017,

Medical Deductions on ITR12

If you experience any issues when completing your Medical Deductions on your Income Tax Return (ITR12), see our tips,

Omission of code 4582

Taxpayers who received IRP5/IT3(a) tax certificates from their employers reflecting codes 3701, 3702, 3802 and/or 3816), may be affected,

Single registration

Allows taxpayers to register, maintain and view associated tax and customs registrations in a consolidated tax profile,

Retirement Fund on ITR12

If you experience any issues when completing your Retirement Annuity Fund contributions on the ITR12, see our tips,

Estate Reform

SARS introduced system changes in respect of deceased estates on 9 December 2016,

New eDNA system

SARS is rolling out a system at our branches where your fingerprints will be captured and authenticated for certain services,

Changes to personal details

If you received a message recently from SARS about changes to your personal details, you need to visit your nearest SARS branch to verify and avoid fraud,

eFiling downtime

Due to maintenance, eFiling will be unavailable on Friday, 20 Jan from 22h00 to Saturday, 21 Jan at 04h30. We apologise for any inconvenience.

31 August 2017 – Trade Statistics for July 2017

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Pretoria, 31 August 2017– The South African Revenue Service (SARS) today releases trade statistics for July 2017 recording a trade balance surplus of R8.99 billion. These statistics include trade data with Botswana, Lesotho, Namibia and Swaziland (BLNS). The year-to-date trade balance surplus (01 January to 31 July 2017) of R36.63 billion is an improvement on the deficit for the comparable period in 2016 of R4.70 billion. Exports for the year-to-date grew by 4.4% whilst imports for the same period declined by 2.2%.

Click here for full document.

PAYE Interim Reconciliation

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Special Voluntary Disclosure

Disclose offshore assets and income with SARS before 31 August 2017 to avoid penalties or criminal prosecution,

Trade Statistics

SARS released trade statistics for July 2017 that recorded a trade balance surplus of R8.99 billion due to exports of R93.09 billion and imports of R84.10 billion,

Automated PAYE Disputes

The new automated system will enable employers to lodge disputes via eFiling and electronically at any SARS branch,

eFiling downtime

Due to ongoing maintenance, eFiling will not be available on 19 May 2017 from 18h00 to 24h00. Apologies for the inconvenience.

Trade Statistics

SARS released trade statistics for June 2017 that recorded a trade balance surplus of R10.67 billion due to exports of R102.14 billion and imports of R91.47 billion,

Review of your tax return

If you’ve received a SMS or email from SARS to go to your nearest SARS branch, you will need to take the required documents with you,

Employer Interim Reconciliation

The Employer Interim Reconciliation will open on 15 September and run to 31 October 2017,

Medical Deductions on ITR12

If you experience any issues when completing your Medical Deductions on your Income Tax Return (ITR12), see our tips,

Omission of code 4582

Taxpayers who received IRP5/IT3(a) tax certificates from their employers reflecting codes 3701, 3702, 3802 and/or 3816), may be affected,

Single registration

Allows taxpayers to register, maintain and view associated tax and customs registrations in a consolidated tax profile,

Retirement Fund on ITR12

If you experience any issues when completing your Retirement Annuity Fund contributions on the ITR12, see our tips,

Estate Reform

SARS introduced system changes in respect of deceased estates on 9 December 2016,

New eDNA system

SARS is rolling out a system at our branches where your fingerprints will be captured and authenticated for certain services,

Changes to personal details

If you received a message recently from SARS about changes to your personal details, you need to visit your nearest SARS branch to verify and avoid fraud,

eFiling downtime

Due to maintenance, eFiling will be unavailable on Friday, 20 Jan from 22h00 to Saturday, 21 Jan at 04h30. We apologise for any inconvenience.

29 August 2017 – Special Voluntary Disclosure Programme closing on 31 august 2017

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Pretoria, 29 August 2017 – The final date for submitting an application under the Special Voluntary Disclosure Programme (SVDP) is still 31 August 2017.

SARS’ media release on 24 August 2017 communicated that the SVDP period would close on 31 August. SARS wishes to dispel any rumour that an extension to the deadline is likely. The closing date is imminent and offers a once-off opportunity to disclose off-shore assets and income with the benefit of SVDP relief.

Taxpayers and advisers are reminded that the SVDP closing date has already been extended twice from the initial date of 31 March 2017 announced in the 2016 Budget. The SVDP closing date was first extended from 31 March 2017 to 30 June 2017 in the Bill introduced in Parliament. Proposals were then made to the Standing Committee on Finance (the Committee) to further extend the SVDP deadline to 30 September 2017. The Committee considered the proposals but only extended the closing date to 31 August 2017 because the automatic exchange of information internationally was, and is still, to begin in September 2017.

SARS is aware that there may be exceptional cases where taxpayers are struggling to obtain off-shore financial information that is required for an SVDP application. To assist these taxpayers to meet the 31 August 2017 deadline, SARS will accept the submission of an application that estimates the values of off-shore assets.

Taxpayers who cannot obtain accurate values on time are urged to submit a SVDP application by 31 August 2017 and include the following with their applications:

 Details of the efforts taken to obtain the financial information

 The date when the information is expected

 A description of the method used to estimate values.

There have been enquiries around the exclusion of taxpayers who have been notified of a SARS audit. Taxpayers are reminded that full SVDP relief cannot be granted if SARS notified the taxpayer of an audit or criminal investigation before the date of the SVDP application and that audit or investigation remains open. SARS does, however, have a discretion to approve an SVDP application even if there is a notification of an audit or criminal investigation. In respect of an application for SVDP relief, SARS must be satisfied that SARS’ audit or criminal investigation would not have detected the taxpayer’s foreign assets or income. SARS must also consider that granting SVDP relief is in the best interest of the good management of the tax system and be the best use of SARS resources.

Taxpayers are once again encouraged to apply for SVDP relief if they have undeclared foreign assets or income. In September 2017 SARS and the tax administrations of other countries will begin exchanging information on an automatic basis. This exchange of information will provide SARS with an international view of taxpayers, and the information will be used by SARS to initiate audits and even criminal investigations. The SVDP gives taxpayers an opportunity to regularise their affairs now, before this happens.

Further information on SVDP can be accessed on the SARS website at:

24 August 2017 – Seven days to go before SVDP deadline

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PRETORIA, THURSDAY 24 AUGUST 2017 – There are seven days left before the Special Voluntary Disclosure Programme (SVDP) closes on 31 August and tax authorities set to begin exchanging data on offshore investments automatically.

SARS is appealing to taxpayers with undisclosed offshore assets to use the time available to submit their applications.

So far, SARS has received 606 SVDP applications of which 253 have been processed.  The 253 processed thus far revealed offshore assets to the value of R6.5 billion.

There has been an increase in enquiries as a result of SARS widespread communication campaign and the increased use of the communication line it has established with financial institutions and advisors on SVDP matters. 

SARS is also aware of applications that are in the process of being finalised via its efiling application process and would like to remind taxpayers to submit these on time.  In line with SARS’ experience with previous deadlines, it is anticipated that the number of applications will increase significantly in the closing days of the SVDP window.

SARS is aware that offshore financial institutions are actively assisting their clients to access prior years’ financial information.  Where, in exceptional circumstances, a taxpayer is struggling to get financial information from an offshore institution or otherwise encountering difficulties in obtaining the relevant values of offshore assets, an estimation of the values of these offshore assets may be submitted for purposes of an SVDP application.  In such a case, the application should be accompanied by:

  1. a description of the efforts to obtain the information;

  2. expected date by which the information will be obtained; and

  3. the method used to estimate the values.

This is not an extension of the 31 August 2017 deadline and will be guided by strict conditions and timeframes, which if not honoured, will forfeit the application. 

A total of 101 tax jurisdictions have committed to automatic exchange of information under the new global Common Reporting Standard (CRS).  The availability of this information will expose defaulting taxpayers to full taxation, full interest, no relief from penalties and no relief from potential criminal prosecution. Current lists of jurisdictions that have committed to implementing the CRS are available at https://www.oecd.org/tax/transparency/AEOI-commitments.pdf.

Taxpayers should note that two SARS-related disclosure programmes are running concurrently, which is one of the reasons why the comparison to the 2003 offshore asset amnesty programme, where only one programme was operational, should be treated with caution. 

Taxpayers have the option to choose between the SVDP and the normal Voluntary Disclosure Programme (VDP), depending on which of the two programmes best fits their circumstances.  Taxpayers with offshore assets that were funded with money that was already taxed in South Africa typically make use of the normal VDP.  In such a case the value of the offshore asset would not form part of the SARS statistics, as with the SVDP.

It is also important to reiterate that the SVDP is a joint effort between SARS and the South African Reserve Bank.  People who do not have an undisclosed tax liability in South Africa but who need to regularise their offshore assets with the Reserve Bank only have to apply to the Reserve Bank. 

Thus far, the Reserve Bank has received 943 applications of which 440 have been processed thus far.
As was demonstrated in the 2016 Budget Review, where no revenue was budgeted around the impact of the introduction of the SVDP, it is difficult to anticipate the final number of applications or the final value of disclosures that the SVDP will yield,.
SARS will gain a better appreciation of the extent of offshore assets held from September 2017 onwards when the automatic exchange of information under the CRS commences for early adopters and in 2018 when automatic exchange of information commences for additional jurisdictions.

While the normal VDP process can be used to declare undisclosed offshore assets, taxpayers should still aim to submit these applications before the automatic exchange of information under the CRS commences.

Details of both the VDP and the SVDP are available from the Voluntary Disclosure Programme page on the SARS website.

17 August 2017 – 95 years for VAT fraudsters

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Pretoria, Thursday 17 August 2017 – Three men, accused of fraudulently claiming Value Added Tax refunds to the value of approximately R300 million, were sentenced in the Gauteng South High Court on Wednesday, 16 August 2017  to a total of 95 years imprisonment – 25 years for Fraud, 25 years for Uttering, 25 years for Forgery and 20 years for Money Laundering. The sentences will run concurrently. This means that each of the accused will spend 25 years in prison.

The VAT fraud, as well as other criminal activity, took place under the pretext that electronic equipment was being imported from the United States of America and then exported again. This practice was used in 18 different companies, where the accused were directors, to elicit approximately R300 million in VAT refunds from the South African Revenue Service (SARS).

The accused, Mr Anton Meyer, Mr Garth Coetser and Mr Clifford Stevens, were charged with fraud and contravening section 59 of the Value Added Tax Act No. 89 of 1991. The accused were successfully indicted on several counts of fraud, forgery, uttering and money laundering in terms of section 4 (b) (i) of Act 121 of 1998.

This successful prosecution clearly demonstrates that SARS has the skills, experience and determination to effectively detect non-compliance by taxpayers and ensure such perpetrators face the full might of the law.  It should serve as a strong warning to anyone that attempts to avoid their tax obligations through irregular means that they will be dealt with accordingly and with the full might of the law.

With this in mind, SARS wishes to assert that the organisation remains resolute, focused and single-minded in ensuring everyone pays their fair share of tax.

4 August 2017 – Moyane Dubai trip

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Pretoria, 4 August 2017 – SARS has noted the media coverage which purports that Commissioner Tom Moyane met members of the Gupta family.

SARS can confirm that Commissioner Moyane was in Dubai on 23 December 2015, in transit to spend Christmas in Portugal. SARS can further confirm that he returned to Dubai on 29 December 2015 and returned to South Africa on the 8th of January 2016.

Commissioner Moyane categorically states that he has never met any member of the Gupta family in either his private or professional capacity.

SARS views the attempts to link the Commissioner and/or SARS as an institution with the Gupta family or their associates, as malicious and reckless in the extreme.

We call on anyone with information to the contrary to provide such to SARS or any organ of state.

1 August 2017 – SARS to help deaf and blind taxpayers

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Pretoria, Tuesday, 1 August 2017 – SARS has embarked on an outreach project to serve and educate the Deaf and Blind communities on tax compliance in specified regions around the country on Thursday, 3 August. 

The inaugural rollout was launched at Ekurhuleni School for the Deaf, Katlehong on 27 July and will continue at various branches in cities and towns around the country, including Nelspruit, Giyani, Klerksdorp, Durban, Pietermaritzburg, Mthatha, Port Elizabeth, Kimberly, Thaba Nchu, Worcester, Wynberg and Bellville.

The purpose of the outreach project is for the SARS Language unit to equip the Deaf and Blind communities with skills and knowledge on the requirements to submit tax returns.

It will take place at specific target schools that cater for the Deaf and Blind in selected communities in all the regions.

This service will also be extended to other members of the community where they will be serviced at a specific branch as per the schedule below. 

The public is invited to disseminate the message to all the Deaf and Blind in the respective communities to visit the SARS branches to afford the Deaf and Blind taxpayers an opportunity to attend to their tax affairs in the language of choice.

SARS has pledged to improve accessibility for the Deaf and Blind communities to educate the general public about tax matters.

The project is part of SARS Language Policy circumscriptions whereby commitment is made to serve the Deaf and Blind taxpayers in South African Sign Language in predetermined schedules.

1 August 2017 – One month left for SVDP

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Pretoria, 1 August 2017 – Taxpayers are reminded of the looming deadline for the Special Voluntary Disclosure Programme (SVDP) on 31 August 2017.  SVDP is a window period for individuals and companies to regularise undisclosed or unauthorized foreign assets and associated income. It came into effect on 01 October 2016.

Taxpayers should note that in terms of the new global Common Reporting Standard (CRS) for the automatic exchange of information between tax authorities, SARS will start receiving offshore third party financial data from other tax authorities on a regular basis from September 2017; hence the SVDP window period ends on 31 August 2017.

SVDP application process

  • The South African Revenue Service (SARS) and the South African Reserve Bank (SARB) have established a joint application process.

  • Applications for tax relief may be made in the new SVDP section of the Voluntary Disclosure Programme (VDP01) form that is available on SARS eFiling

  • Applications for exchange control relief may be made on the new SVDP01 form, also hosted on SARS eFiling.

For more information on any of the abovementioned refer to the links below:

31 July 2017 – Trade Statistics for June 2017

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Pretoria, 31 July 2017– The South African Revenue Service (SARS) today releases trade statistics for June 2017 recording a trade balance surplus of R10.67 billion. These statistics include trade data with Botswana, Lesotho, Namibia and Swaziland (BLNS). The year-to-date trade balance surplus (01 January to 30 June 2017) of R27.68 billion is an improvement on the deficit for the comparable period in 2016 of R5.04 billion.

Click here for the full document.