In previous articles, dated 15 and 29 October 2018, it was noted that SARS will be imposing administrative penalties from December 2018 for outstanding Corporate Income Tax (CIT) returns.
The South African Revenue Service (SARS) has once again embarked on a nation-wide awareness campaign to remind taxpayers of their obligation to submit outstanding tax returns. The campaign is targeted primarily at businesses, to encourage compliance regarding Corporate Income Tax (CIT), Value-Added Tax (VAT) and Pay-As-You-Earn (PAYE). Information on taxpayer obligations, the submission of tax returns, and consequences related to non-submission will be shared during the campaign.
SARS will also issue final-demand letters to affected taxpayers.
Although Tax Season closed on 31 October 2018, those who missed the deadline are still expected to file all outstanding tax returns, and administrative penalties may be imposed for failure to file. Provisional taxpayers have until 31 January 2019 to file their tax returns via e-Filing.
Between April and September of 2018, SARS achieved 30 successful convictions in Value-Added Tax (VAT) and Personal Income Tax (PIT) fraud cases, involving R65 billion. This represents a 100% success rate in convictions relating to the fraud cases that were investigated by SARS criminal investigators and finalised by the courts. In total, the courts finalised 74 cases during this time, which represents the first six months of SARS’ 2018-2019 financial year. The cases related to charges of bribery, fraud and theft and contravention of the Income Tax Act, VAT Act and Customs & Excise Act.
Do not delay your tax returns as it may have serious repercussions as shown above.
Article – 26 November 2018 – Re-enforcing Tax Compliance (pdf)