Draft tax bills target spousal donations and VDP interest relief
Treasury wants to close what it sees as a tax-avoidance route involving emigrating spouses, while proposing a taxpayer-friendly change to voluntary disclosures.
SARS
Draft TLAB will settle living annuity commutation rule
The proposal puts SARS’s existing cumulative approach into the Income Tax Act, ending uncertainty over whether the R150 000 limit applies per policy.
Crypto transactions and undeclared holdings face growing scrutiny
Experts say taxpayers with undeclared crypto income should consider voluntary disclosure before enhanced reporting increases the likelihood of a SARS audit.
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.
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.
Treasury’s crackdown spreads beyond municipalities
Municipalities that fix their governance failures could regain funding within weeks, while provinces and national departments are now facing the same scrutiny.
Treasury intervention lays bare concentrated municipal debt
Just 10 of the 69 affected municipalities account for more than R21.6bn in arrears to utilities, retirement funds, SARS and other creditors.
What to check when SARS has filled in your return
Two-pot withdrawals, carried-forward retirement contributions, and incomplete third-party data can affect the final tax position.
Refundable ‘premium’ sinks taxpayer’s insurance deduction
The High Court finds that most of the payment was a recoverable, interest-bearing deposit rather than expenditure incurred for genuine insurance cover.
SARS draft guide sets out tax implications for crypto transactions
Crypto users may trigger tax consequences through swaps, staking, mining, payments, employment benefits, or donations, even where no rand conversion takes place.
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.
ConCourt confirms limits of VAT relief for second-hand gold
Refining does not erase the legal significance of earlier manufacture into non-prescribed forms such as jewellery.
New SARS filing feature could mean fewer verification delays
By addressing minor inconsistencies upfront, taxpayers may avoid verification delays and receive refunds sooner where applicable.
Connected data is strengthening the fight against tax evasion
Advanced data matching is helping SARS to identify businesses and individuals whose tax affairs do not align with their activities.
Tax filing season will put new security measures to the test
After concerns over profile hijackings and fraud, SARS says stronger security measures are central to its digital-first tax-filing strategy.
Two-pot’s hidden effect: members are staying in retirement funds
While billions have been withdrawn through the two-pot system, Alexforbes says more members are remaining connected to retirement funds long after leaving their employers.
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.
