Antares Capital

Taxpayers may be forced to submit a statement of all their assets and liabilities from 2020 to inform a future decision about a wealth tax in South Africa. The Davis Tax Committee this week published its final reports including one on wealth taxes. It did not recommend the introduction of a wealth tax, saying more work is needed to ensure that a “recurrent net wealth tax” is well designed to at least generate more revenue than the costs of administering it. The committee was appointed by the Minister of Finance in July 2013. Its purpose was to inquire into the role of the tax system “in the promotion of inclusive economic growth, employment creation, development and fiscal sustainability”. Patricia Williams, tax partner at Bowmans, says the reporting of assets at market value will place quite a burden on taxpayers. The committee also suggested that “substantial penalties” should be charged on incorrect reporting. “This process would be potentially costly, either for the time a

If you had to choose, would it be company car or travel allowance? It’s a question that regularly plagues both employers and employees. In light of new Sars requirements for travel reimbursements, it needs to be carefully revisited. Important changes The limit of 12 000km that was previously applied to reimbursements has now been removed. If travel exceeded this distance in the past, it was reimbursed at a per kilometer rate higher than that prescribed by Sars and the total amount needed to be reflected under code 3702. However, reimbursement paid at or below the prescribed rate was declared under code 3703. Either way, PAYE was not deducted from the employee’s income. From March 1, if an employer reimburses staff at a per kilometer rate higher than that prescribed by Sars, they have to split any reimbursement into two components. The portion that falls within Sars’s rate must be declared using code 3702 while the portion above that rate must be reflected under a new code, 3722.