Disclose your defaults before SARS finds them!

A grim warning for South African taxpayers. Long gone are the days when tax fraudsters could run circles around SARS, which has intensified its efforts to crack down on tax evasion by pursuing criminal action against non-compliant taxpayers. One example is when SARS came knocking on the door of a private hospital and its director, […]

Can SARS correct my assessment?

A taxpayer who is aggrieved by an assessment or decision of SARS against that taxpayer has the right to dispute that assessment or decision. If an original assessment has not been issued, SARS may request a taxpayer to submit an amended return to correct an undisputed error made in the prior return. In the case […]

Tax ombud – recourse for aggrieved taxpayers

The Tax Administration Act that came into effect on 1 October 2012 is a valiant attempt to balance the rights of the tax man with those of the taxpayer.  One of the ways of bolstering the taxpayer’s position on this not very level playing field is the creation of the office of the ombudsman or […]

Taxpayers’ right to have disputes resolved

In a recent Tax Court decision[1], the Tax Court confirmed that taxpayers have a right to have their disputes resolved in a court of law as enunciated in section 34 of the Constitution. However, they cannot rely on this right when they are using delaying tactics to prevent the matter from being heard. In this […]