What’s New at SARS

5 April 2024 – Value-Added Tax Act, 1991

• Binding General Ruling 69 – Documents and Records to be Retained and Maintained by Agent under Section 54(2C) and (3)

5 April 2024 – Customs and Excise Act, 1964: Publication details for tariff amendment notices R4599, R4600, and R4601, as published in Government Gazette 50431 on 5 April 2024, are now available.

4 April 2023 – A reminder that the SARS Third Party Data Annual Submissions opened on 1 April 2024 and will close on 31 May 2024. Third parties must submit accurate and complete data for the entire period of 1 March 2023 – 29 February 2024.

Third Parties (banks, medical schemes, fund administrators, among others.) must, by law, send data to SARS via a return. They must include information such as:

• savings account interest,
• medical scheme contributions,
• withholding tax on interest,
• dividends tax,
• IT3 data submissions: IT3(b), IT3(c), IT3(e), IT3(s),
• medical scheme contributions, and insurance payments.

Third Party data providers can submit data to SARS using these three electronic options:

1. eFiling (via a data submission form with a limited volume)
2. Connect: Direct® (Unlimited)
3. Secured File Gateway [HTTPS] (for files smaller than 10MB)

To ensure a successful submission to use and activate these channels, you must be registered with eFiling.

For more information, see the Third Party Data submission landing page.

4 April 2024 – One of SARS’s strategic objectives is to improve our service to deliver a seamless taxpayer experience that provides clarity and certainty to make it easier to meet your tax obligations. This letter guides you how to manage your pay-as-you-earn (PAYE) tax obligations during the annual declaration period.

Your tax compliance helps SARS to achieve its Higher Purpose, which is to enable the State to provide for the well-being of all South Africans.

Employees’ Tax Compliance Starts with You, the Employer

The Employer Annual Declaration period is open from 1 April and closes on 31 May 2024. During this period, Employers must submit their annual reconciliation declarations (EMP501) with accurate and up-to-date payroll information about their employees. Your EMP501 must include:

• Monthly Employer declarations (EMP201) for PAYE, Unemployment Insurance Fund contributions (UIF), and the Skills Development Levy.
• Information about payments made (excluding penalties and interest paid).
• Employee tax certificates (IRP5/IT3[a] generated) covering the tax year from 1 March 2023 to 29 February 2024.

For more information, see the PAYE landing page.

4 April 2024 – Customs and Excise Act, 1964: The tariff amendments notices, scheduled for publication in the Government Gazette, relate to the following amendments:

With effect from 5 April 2024:

• Part 1 of Schedule No. 1, to implement the correct AfCFTA rates of duty on various tariff subheading to align with the AfCFTA Agreement

With retrospective effect from 31 January 2024:

• Part 1 of Schedule No. 1, by the reduction in the AfCFTA rates of duty with retrospective effect from 31 January 2024, being the date the Agreement was implemented

With effect from 1 March 2024:

• Part 1 of Schedule No. 1, by the reduction in the rates of duty on minced anchovies as recommended in Commission’s Report 719 with retrospective effect from 1 March 2024, being the date the amendment was implemented

Publication details will be made available later

4 April 2024 – The Mpumalanga Mobile Tax Unit Schedule for April to June 2024 is now available.

3 April 2024 – Achieving our Vision 2024 of a smart, modern SARS with unquestionable integrity that is trusted and admired is of paramount importance. Pivotal to the delivery of our vision are our digital platforms and technology infrastructure. To provide clarity and certainty, make it easy for taxpayers and traders to comply with their obligations and building public trust and confidence, our technology assets must demonstrate the highest levels of availability, robustness and security.

In accordance with our Vision and Strategic Objectives, which include modernising our systems to provide Digital and Streamlined online services, we are hard at work ensuring that our digital platforms and technology infrastructure are available, robust and secure, by performing regular upgrades, enhancements and maintenance.

Considering the above, SARS Digital platform upgrades are scheduled for Friday, 5 April 2024 from 18h00 to 22h00 and Saturday, 6 April 2024 from 20h00 to 22h00.

Customs Responses (CUSRES messages) to transactions submitted during this time will be delayed, however, arrival and exit management functions are available at land border posts for all released declarations and manifests.

Stakeholders are therefore urged to submit priority Customs Goods Declarations (bills of entry) and Road Manifest by Friday, 5 April 2024 @ 17h00.

3 April 2024 – SARS is striving to make it easy for taxpayers to comply with their obligations. As a result, we are automatically assessing a growing number of individual taxpayers. However, some may not have this benefit or, for various reasons, may need access to eFiling to validate the auto-assessments.

SARS has determined that many employees may not have access to the internet and that, given employers’ rules, some systems block access to SARS eFiling.

SARS would like to ask large employers or representative of large employers, to allow your employees to access SARS eFiling through the employer’s systems. Some employees’ only point of internet access is their work computer, so enabling your employees to transact with SARS online means that they do not have to take time off to visit a SARS branch.

SARS values your support and collaboration.

3 April 2024 – The tax workshop schedules for Mpumalanga during April to June are now available.

2 April 2024 – The South African Revenue Service (SARS) is pleased to announce its preliminary revenue collection outcome for the 2023/24 fiscal year.

SARS was established in 1997 and remains inextricably linked to the country’s democracy, now 30 years old. This link is premised on a pivotal role that SARS plays in fulfilling its legal mandate, often expressed as its Higher Purpose. The organisation is realising its Vision 2020-2025 of a SMART, modern SARS, that can be trusted and admired by all. Since its inception, SARS has collected R21.6 trillion in net tax revenues. Tax revenue collections have increased from R114 billion in 1994/95, at a compounded annual growth rate of 9.9% and an average tax-to-GDP ratio of 22.2%. To put this in perspective, our collections over the last 4 business days this fiscal year amounted to R114 billion or the total collected in 1995 for the entire year.

As at the end of March 2024, SARS collected a record gross amount of R2.155 trillion, year on-year 4.2% against the nominal GDP of 4.9%. SARS paid out refunds of R414 billion to taxpayers, the highest ever quantum in refunds compared to R381 billion in the prior year, representing growth of 8.6%. This brings the collected net amount to R 1.741 trillion which is almost R10 billion higher than the revised estimate and R54 billion more than last year’s R 1.687 trillion.

See the full media release here.

For more information, see:

• Revenue announcement 2024: Media Pack
• Revenue tables 2024

For more information, contact [email protected]

28 March 2024 – South Africa recorded a preliminary trade balance surplus of R14.0 billion in February 2024. This surplus is attributable to exports of R161.8 billion and imports of R147.8 billion.

See the full media release here.

Or visit the Trade Statistics webpage.

28 March 2024 – Ad Valorem Excise Duty is payable on certain locally manufactured goods and goods imported of the same class or kind. Ad Valorem Excise Duty is determined in terms of Schedule 1 Part 2B, which specifies the goods on which duty is levied, each with its own applicable rate of duty. The policy and annexure have been updated to align with legislation.

• SE-ADV-02 – Ad Valorem Excise Duty – External Policy
• SE-ADV-02-A01 – Ad Valorem Value Determination – External Annexure

28 March 2024 – Customs and Excise Act, 1964: Publication details for tariff amendment notices R4551, R4552, R4553, R4554, R4555, and R4556, as published in Government Gazette 50381 on 28 March 2024, are now available.

27 March 2024 – Customs and Excise Act, 1964: The tariff amendments notices, scheduled for publication in the Government Gazette, relate to the following amendments:

With effect from 1 April 2024:

• Part 3A of Schedule No. 1, by an increase of 4c/bag in the rate of environmental levy on plastic bags from 28c/bag to 32c/bag to give effect to the Budget proposals announced by the Minister of Finance on 21 February 2024
• Part 3C of Schedule No. 1, by an increase of R5/lamp in the rate of environmental levy on electric filament lamps from R15/lamp to R20/lamp to give effect to the Budget proposals announced by the Minister of Finance on 21 February 2024
• Part 3D of Schedule No. 1, by an increase of R14 per g/km CO₂ in the rate of motor vehicle carbon dioxide emissions levy from R132 to R146 on new passenger vehicles on emissions exceeding 95g/km and, by R19 per g/km CO₂ from R176 and R195 on new double cab vehicles on emissions exceeding 175g/km, respectively to give effect to the Budget proposals announced by the Minister of Finance on 21 February 2024

With retrospective effect from 1 January 2024:

• Part 3F of Schedule No. 1, by an increase of R31 per tonne in the rate of environmental levy on carbon dioxide equivalent from R159 to R190 per tonne to give effect to the Budget proposals announced by the Minister of Finance on 21 February 2024
• Part 5A of Schedule No. 1, by the substitution of Notes 7(a)(vi) and b(vi) in order to change the density factors for the calculation of the carbon fuel levy from 0.75 to 0.7405 kilogram per litre for petrol and from 0.0845 to 0.8255 kilogram per litre for diesel to give effect to the Budget proposals announced by the Minister of Finance on 21 February 2024

With effect from 3 April 2024:

• Part 5A of Schedule No. 1, by substitution to Note 8 as well the increase of 1c in the carbon fuel levy from 10c/li to 11c/li for petrol and from 11c/li to 14c/li for diesel, respectively to give effect to the Budget proposals announced by the Minister of Finance on 21 February 2024

Publication details will be made available later

27 March 2024 – The facility codes used in Box 30 on the Customs Clearance Declaration (CCD) have been updated to include the details of the new approved container depot – Imperial Clearing and Forwarding South Africa in Durban.

• SC-CF-19-A02 – Facility Code List – External Annexure

27 March 2024 – The published Excise Other Fermented Beverages policy has been updated to indicate the exclusions in terms of item 624.50. 

• SE-OFB-02 – Other Fermented Beverages – External Policy

27 March 2024 – The latest Tax Practitioner Connect Newsletter Issue 50 is available. This issue includes information on Employees’ allowances, the PAYE Employer reconciliation BRS for the 2025 year of assessment, Excise declaration, return submission and payments, latest SARS webinars, tax directive system and legislative changes.

26 March 2024 – As the tax revenue financial year draws to a close this week, the South African Revenue Service (SARS) has labelled March a priority month for taxpayers and traders to settle their tax and customs payments and tax and customs debt on or before the last business day of this month, which is Thursday, 28 March 2024.

Payment options

Tax payments can be made via a bank, electronic funds transfer (EFT), via eFiling or the SARS MobiApp Customs payments can also be made at any SARS Customs office. It is important that taxpayers and traders perform the payment transaction during business hours to authorise their banking institutions to release the payment to SARS – a required step if the payment is made via eFiling and the MobiApp.  Balance amount enquiries may be made by requesting a statement of account on eFiling or the SARS MobiApp or by SMS to SARS on 47277.

#MarchPriorityMonth #YourTaxMatters

Issued by: The South African Revenue Service

Enquiries: [email protected]

26 March 2024 – The tax workshop schedules for North West province during April are now available.

26 March 2024 – The Mobile Tax Unit schedule for Limpopo province, Modimolle and Bela-Bela, is now available.