Dividend-stripping case sharpens the boundaries of legitimate tax planning
The Tax Court has affirmed the choice principle but raised fresh questions about where legitimate tax-efficient structuring ends and impermissible avoidance begins.
Author: Amanda Visser
Tax uncertainty clouds offshore trust distributions
Practitioners warn that applying section 7(8) to cross-border trust distributions could create onerous and potentially perpetual tax and compliance consequences.
Trust tax filings jump as penalties start to roll out
Trustees face growing pressure to file outstanding returns or formally deregister dormant trusts before penalties escalate.
Data integrity emerges as the new tax risk frontier
Companies are under growing pressure to prove that the figures in returns, financial statements, and supporting documents all tell the same story.
SA closer to advance pricing regime, but thresholds threaten access
The new APA process aims to reduce disputes and double taxation, but practitioners say the entry bar is so high that few groups will qualify.
Temporary fuel tax cuts blunt impact of crude spike
The main pressure on petrol prices is coming from global crude markets and freight costs rather than taxes alone.
ConCourt ruling expands GAAR reach and raises investor risk
A wider interpretation of ‘party’ under GAAR means even commercially sound participants may face SARS’s scrutiny in multi-entity transactions.
Tax amendments materially narrow understatement penalty defence
The bona fide inadvertent error defence is limited to substantial understatements, but there is relief for taxpayers seeking to challenge estimated assessments.
Businesses should weigh VAT deregistration carefully
Rising the VAT threshold to R2.3m may prompt some businesses to deregister, but the process can trigger an immediate output tax liability on assets.
VAT decision highlights constitutional defects across tax Acts
Tax experts say the constitutional problem identified by the High Court could affect several other laws that give the finance minister similar powers.
Smart tech boosts compliance, yet R646bn tax debt looms large
Using AI and third-party data, SARS identified some 100 000 high-income earners who were not registered for tax.
Zero-rated chicken will have minimal impact on tax revenue, report finds
Advocates say including certain chicken products in the zero-rated food basket will directly benefit poorer households that rely on bone-in cuts and offal.
Fewer taxpayers increasingly carrying the personal income tax load
With no inflation adjustment in 2025, PIT collections rose sharply, increasing the burden on individuals without changes to the headline rates.
Open letter to Kieswetter highlights rising taxpayer frustration
The Office of the Tax Ombud is seeing the same delays, verification snags, and procedural irregularities highlighted by a tax practitioner.
Courts willing to consider evidence beyond a contract’s written terms
Modern contract interpretation permits surrounding circumstances to explain contractual meaning – undermining SARS’s argument that extrinsic evidence is inadmissible.
Calls grow for full audit trails in eFiling profile hijackings
Tax practitioners argue that the apparent targeting of refund-eligible profiles points to either insider access or critical control failures.
Treasury upbeat on near-term tax haul, but flags medium-term shortfalls
The MTBPS raises the 2025/26 gross revenue estimate by R19.7bn but warns of a R15.7bn shortfall against Budget estimates for 2026/27.
