Written by Nicci
Updated 27 June 2022
Too often, taxpayers rush when completing their tax return, and then they miss out on some expenses they are eligible to claim. Don’t overpay tax by overlooking these seven common tax breaks.
Contributions towards a Retirement Annuity
Your contributions towards retirement funds are deductible for tax up to a limit of 27,5% of the greater of your taxable income or remuneration (to a maximum of R350,000 per year). This limit applies to the total contributions you make to any Pension, Provident or Retirement Annuity (RA) fund during the year...
Written by Nicci
Updated 8 June 2022
The cement is all used up and the bricks have been laid exactly where they need to be. A huge sigh of relief because… finally, construction and renovations are complete! And, just when you thought the worry was over, you realise that the differences between the building allowance and renovations aren’t clear to you. “Aren’t they all the same?” is the question lingering in your head. Don't fret, below is a breakdown of the exact clarity you’re looking for. ...
Written by Patrick
Posted 11 April 2022
Let’s face it, SARS didn’t make it easy for taxpayers to claim their home office expenses this past tax season. We can’t blame them really - being faced with millions of newbie work-from-homers, they had to weed out the legitimate claims from the chancers.
At the start of the season, they made it clear that they would only allow claims for taxpayers who had a separate office at home, set up specifically for their work, which was used by them alone. The office could n...
Written by Nicci
Posted 18 August 2021
These tips are part of TaxTim's personalised recommendation tool called the Tax Health Score. Once you file your tax return with TaxTim,
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Written by Patrick
Posted 12 April 2021
Good news if you’ve been working from home for the past year. You can claim a tax deduction if you worked from home for more than half of your total working hours or for more than six months during the tax year that started in March 2020.
“Claim for your home office if you started working from home at the end of March, and worked there for at least 6 months till the end of February 2021, to deduct this benefit in the tax ...
Written by Patrick
Posted 1 April 2021
Do you receive a travel allowance from your employer because your job used to entail significant travel? As the Covid-19 pandemic hit and lockdown restrictions have curbed travel, you might be wondering how this will affect your taxes. Here’s what you need to know to avoid owing the taxman, even more, this tax season.
How does SARS tax my travel allowance?
Under normal circumstances, your employer would only offer you a travel allowance if your job requi...
Written by Vee
Posted 18 January 2021
For those fortunate enough to receive bonus payments as part of your remuneration, you’ll understand the
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Written by Nicci
Posted 13 May 2020
There is a section in the tax return called ‘Other Deductions’ which often causes confusion for taxpayers
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Written by Marc
Posted 23 April 2020
Why must I pay tax, I don’t earn enough! Will I get a penalty if I don’t disclose all my income to SARS?
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Written by Nicci
Posted 21 April 2020
Written by Marc
Posted 20 April 2020
Written by Vee
Posted 12 April 2020
Tax isn’t the easiest of subjects to navigate. Besides the long list of legalese to master, there’s the fact that tax legislation
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Written by Marc
Posted 10 April 2020
You may have seen the word PAYE on your IRP5 payslip or heard it mentioned by your employer, but have no idea of its meaning.
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Written by Vee
Posted 8 April 2020
Written by Nicci
Posted 21 February 2018
Taxpayers should breathe a sigh of relief as a much lower than expected R36bn in increased taxes was announced by the once-off Minister of Finance. The biggest news amongst the increases was the VAT rise of 1%. For the first time in 25 years, all South Africans will see most goods and services become a little bit more expensive thanks to the Value Added Tax rise. Although controversial, a VAT rise was much needed and will bring in almost R23...
Written by Marc
Posted 22 February 2017
Personal Tax Rates (rates below)
Individuals across the country, those qualifying above the new tax threshold of R75 750 (previously R75 000) will be paying increased taxes of R16.5bn (previously R5.65bn in actual tax increase) for the next tax year, most of this will be for high income earners, however. Taxpayers generally across the board will be earning the tiniest bit more money each year as their tax brackets...
Written by Vee
Posted 24 May 2016
Are you the type of person dashing into the store to grab a birthday gift en route to a party? Or perhaps you’ve found yourself scratching through your craft box at 11pm the night before to make a ‘World Book Day’ outfit for your son? Or possibly you’re one of the hundreds of thousands of South Africans who waits until the last week of November to file your tax return?
While I’m not suggesting that every minute of your life needs to be pre-planned and organised, there are certainly a number of benefits to getting your tax done early...
Written by Marc
Posted 8 April 2016
Taxpayers who earn rental income from a second property of theirs often don’t know what they need to do when it comes to declaring this income to SARS. Sometimes taxpayers think that they don’t have to declare this extra income, or can hide it from SARS by not entering it on their tax return form - a big mistake!
The truth is that extra income earned from rental is taxable, and SARS needs to know about it. In some cases - if the amount earned (profit) outside of a sala...
Written by Vee
Posted 25 February 2016
The 24th of February 2016 was supposed to be a watershed moment for the Economy of South Africa. The old-new Minister of Finance, Pravin Gordhan, was to deliver his budget for the 2016/2017 tax year and save South Africa from a financial pit-fall in the form of an International Ratings Agency downgrade. The jury is still out on whether or not this is possible. Immediately after the budget was revealed the Rand tumbled 2%, which doesn’t bode well for market sentiment. However, ...
Written by Vee
Posted 23 February 2016
Tax compliance makes its way into many aspects of life and business. Perhaps you’re considering applying for a tender, or for a foreign investment allowance to move funds offshore, or even looking to emigrate and leave our shores. These are just a few examples of instances where you may be asked by a third party to provide a Tax Clearance Certificate.
And until now, the course of action to obtain your certificate has been a tedious one.
Upon request, SARS would check its records and verify that the taxpayer had filed all required tax returns, paid all taxes, penalties and interest due, before releasing a Tax Clearance Certificate confirming a good standing...
Written by Vee
Posted 10 February 2016
If you’re diligently putting money away for your retirement in the form of a pension, provident fund or retirement annuity, you may be curious – perhaps even a touch concerned – about the changes SARS has made to the retirement fund tax laws, which come into effect on 1 March 2016.
If you missed the news, here's a quick overview.
SARS have changed how contributions to retirement funds are treated from a tax perspective, as well as how your funds are managed when you retire...
Written by Marc
Posted 25 February 2015
New Finance Minister Nene delivers his first budget with some “better than expected” tax increases. The fight against corruption was highlighted with the minster announcing a series of reforms and procedures to be introduced both to curb corruption and make doing business with the state easier. The minister announced that R25bn would be saved in expenditure over the next two years, but R16.8bn is to be raised this year via tax increases and a remarkably large rise in the fuel and road accident fund levies. To be honest, we expected greater tax increases from the minister, thankfully he spared us some of the pain! ...
Written by Marc
Posted 6 August 2014
SARS has typically been quick to refund taxpayers who have filed their tax returns and are due a refund, with money appearing back in their bank accounts smoothly and reliably, often within a day or two.
However since the opening of this tax season on 1 July 2014, the process appears to have changed and suffered a few hiccups along the way. From the queries we have received over the last month from multiple confused taxpayers, it would seem that thousands of refunds were first paid out, then reversed...
Written by Marc
Posted 23 July 2014
As soon as tax season opens in July, many taxpayers rush to submit their ITR12 tax returns as early as possible, eagerly hoping for a nice refund. After the rush, when nothing happens, they often ask us "Ok I have submitted. What happens now?" In most cases where an income tax refund is due to a taxpayer, SARS pays it out within one or two days. However there are many instances when this does not happen, leaving people feeling unsure as to what is happening with their tax return and tax refund. ...
Written by Marc
Posted 26 February 2014
In delivering what could possibly be his last annual budget and perhaps in an election year a very pragmatic one, Minister Pravin Gordhan painted a rather positive picture for the future of South Africa, whilst at the same time warning of the impact the global economy is having on the South African economy. He too, had a “good story” to tell of how well managed the economy is and how we have survived the economic downturn of the last half decade. The minister, like his predecessors b...
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