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Foreign employment income Posts in Tax Q&A

60 day rule



I have an employment contract outside of SA and my employer does not deduct PAYE, do I have to be outside of SA for 183 days of which 60 must be consecutive in a tax year or just in a 12 month period (if contract is from 15 April 2015 - 15 April 2016)?

Tax exemption for Offshore workers



I read a previous post about "Offshore workers" and tax exemption. I fit the profile with my work situation, but do I still need to stay out of the country for 60 consecutive days?

Deposit of foreign income into South African bank account, is it taxable?



If I am working outside the country and wanted to send a large sum of money as a deposit for property within South Africa what are the Tax implications if any. I believe that because it is a large sum of money that it would need to be declared to the South African Reserve Bank beforehand.

Calculation of 183 & 60 days by working backwards a 12 month period from the last day of employment



I started working abroad in Hong Kong on 1 Jun 2014 and am comfortable meeting the 183 & 60 days requirement for the 2014/2015 & 2015/2016 SA tax year of assessments. However, I need clarification on the 2016/2017 SA tax year of assessment as I will be tax returning back to SA permanently on 30 Sept 2016. I would have met the 60 days continuous requirement, but not the 183 days, it will only be a 122 days from 1 Jun 2016 to 30 Sept 2016. Reading Income Tax Interpretation Note No. 16, specificall...

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Donations from abroad



I am a south African working and living abroad. I would like to transfer some money to my retired parents. Will they pay tax on the money I transfer to them?

Rental income allowable tax deductions



I am currently in the UK and need some help regarding various tax related queries before I tax return to South Africa within the next 2 months

Including my tax return I did online before I left. (needs to be finalised)
A bank account change at SARS. (do I have to do it in Person)
I need to register a SA company for VAT. I would like to know how long I must be in the UK to have a tax benefit in South Africa. I have been working here since 1/1/2016 and have to tax return before 31/07/2016...

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Can I dispute a claim from a few years back?



I believe I qualified for a exemption on my tax a few years ago (around 2011/2012) - out the country for more than 183 days with one trip more than 60 consecutive days all for work purposes. My tax consultant at the time said he submitted all the documents, but when I went to SARS they said they had not recieved them. I handed them in at SARS and they requested further information which I submitted. They then requested further information which I then got so frustrated I decided to give up on th...

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Tax implications on money earned from Foreign employment income



I'm a South African with dual nationality (British). I send money to SA every month to pay off debt and to pay off my house in the Western Cape. Will there be a tax implication for this? I will eventually tax return to SA in about 5 years. The reason is set up as house hold bills. Should I use something else?
The money goes from my account here to my account there. Thanks

What is the tax on interest earned for a non-resident?



I am currently living outside of South Africa. Am I able to deposit money with a South African bank and at what rate will my interest earnings be taxed at? Am I able to withdraw the money easily again from South Africa?

Taxation whilst working out of South Africa



Hi I will be working in Botswana from the 1st of June. I will be taxed in Botswana but will get paid into my South African bank account. I am a South African resident but will be living and working in Botswana. Would I be taxed in South Africa as well?
I am currently contributing to a RA in South Africa would I be able to continue doing this without being taxed on it?

Foreign Gift to SA Citizen / Donation



I am a South Africa citizen and would like to receive a monetary gift from my sister who is a UK citizen only - is there any tax implication for me?

Returning to SA after 8 years and still earning pounds and not rand. When am I tax resident in SA?



I'm South African born and worked and lived in the UK for 8 years before moving back about a year ago. I have dual citizenship and I am still paid and taxed by a UK company and earn no income in South Africa. When will I be considered a tax resident in South Africa?

I went to see a tax consultant who didn't really give me much info except 'don't worry', that while I'm not earning South African income I wouldn't be taxed here. I also have shares in a UK company that I'm periodically se...

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2016 delayed verification



I submitted my Tax tax returns at a SARS branch on the 25th of Feb. I was missing one document and supplied it to the branch the following day. My tax returns were triggered for verification, both the ladies who assisted me told me it takes up to 21 days, I called a few times with my case numbers and the call centre told me 60 days - this is ridiculous, as all the documents were supplied and I was not advised of this by the staff at the branch. What can I do about this?

Foreign donation



You previously answered my question relating to receiving a donation from my brother who lives overseas - I understand that if the money comes from a foreign source that I would not be liable for tax. Further to this I would like to ask: is there a limit to how much receives as a donation before one is liable for tax or can one receive any amount as a donation?

How much tax am I going to pay on foreign income?



I am earning a monthly income from being a virtual assistant for a company based in the US and earning dollars. It is paid via PayPal and drawn through my bank. This is a second income, not my main form of income. It is part-time work. How much tax am I going to pay?

Section 10(1)o - Any 12 month period



I started a job out of SA on 1 August 2014 and traveled regularly from SA to my place of work out of SA on rotation up until the end of the job on 29 February 2016. For the 12 month period 1 Aug 2014 - 31 July 2015 I exceeded the 183 and 60 day requirements. I therefore claimed my tax exemption on my 2015 tax return (for the income earned during Aug 2014 - Feb 2015). For the period 1 August 2015 to 29 February 2016 I exceeded the 60 day requirement but not the 183 days. However, if I calculate 1...

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Section 10(1)o - successive tax years and overlapping 12 month periods



Hi Tim,

When working successive years out of SA on a rotation basis (regular travel to and from SA) am I able to overlap my 12 month periods I use when calculating the days worked out of SA?

Section 10(1)o makes mention of the 183 and 60 day periods being part of any 12 month period which may start or end in the financial year in question. There is no mention of not using periods 'twice' ie If I do a 60 day period out of SA in June and July 2015 I could use this sti...

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UAE employment income received 2009 - 2015



I was employed by a UAE company from March 2008 to Sept 2015. I did not emigrate to UAE and always had the intention of tax returning to SA. I was never more than 30 days in total in SA when visiting family before I left for UAE again to continue employment. Will my employment income earned for this period be taxable in SA? Where do I include this on my tax returns when completing them for SARS?

Do I pay tax in SA as a non-resident working in SA for a US university?



I am a US citizen living here in South Africa for about two years because of my spouse's work. The university I work for has graciously allowed me to continue working remotely for them while I am here. I work with computers on the internet. Recently, someone from my work has insisted that I needed to file for income tax in South Africa. I disagree, believing that my income source is not South African and that I am a non-resident for tax purposes. Is there some specific evidence I can use to back...

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Taxation on foreign sourced pension



My wife and I are Irish and UK citizens respectively, currently living in the UK and are interested in the feasibility of retiring to South Africa. Our method of retirement would be either on a temporary retirement visa or as a person of independent financial means. I only mention this in case it impacts on my question. My particular interest is understanding how my UK pension income would be taxed in SA. My pension would be derived from a number of sources
1. UK State pension
2. Company pension. All pension is derived from activities not associated with South Africa...

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Offshore 60 day trip



I am South African and I work offshore. I know I have to work 183 days offshore in total, with 60 of these being continuous. Would a 60 day trip that falls over February and March 2016 be applicable for the 2016 tax year, or do I have to do another 60 day trip to be tax exempt?

Refund audit



I would just like to know is a refund audit quicker than the 60 days SARS gives themselves? I was audited and requested to send supporting documents the audit was complete and when I called in the call centre agent said all audits have been complete, it is now at the refund department and they give themselves another 60 working days to pay out. So my question is are they normally quicker when it comes to this 60 working days?

Foreign income



I am resident in SA for tax purposes I am working in Mozambique and paying 20% tax for non residents. I will be out SA in excess of 183 days. Is this income exempt and will I be able to claim any of the tax paid.

Refund after how long



How does it take to receive your refund after you submitted your proof of residents and 3 months bank statement?

Declaration of interest earned on Fixed Deposit investments for tax purposes



Good Day, my question relates to the declaration of interest accrued (but not necessarily paid) on Fixed Deposit investments for income tax purposes. I am a provisional tax payer and prefer to pay the tax in the tax year in which the interest is earned. For example, if I start a 24 month fixed deposit on 1st January 2016, maturing 31st December 2017, interest (simple) payable at maturity then is it permissible to declare the interest as follows assuming for simplicity that interest accrues at R100. 00 per day:...

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