The Supreme Court of Appeal confirms that re-quantifying a tax debt post-rescue commencement doesn’t create a new, preferential liability – cementing SARS’s place as a concurrent creditor under an approved rescue plan.
Sanlam reports that most withdrawals came from financially strained members in mid-life, with little evidence that funds were used to reduce debt. Instead, spending patterns suggest pressure to cover everyday expenses.
Danie van Zyl of Sanlam Corporate Investments warns that allowing access to retirement components in retrenchment cases might jeopardise long-term savings and place added pressure on trustees.
Taxpayers may struggle to challenge SARS’s authority to repatriate foreign assets after a High Court ruling upheld its powers, potentially paving the way for more assertive tax enforcement.
SARS can appoint third parties to deduct tax debts directly from retirement funds, overriding the protections under the Pension Funds Act.
SARS’s discretion to write off temporarily an amount of tax debt while a company is subject to business rescue will be reviewed.
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