SARS

29 February 2024 – The Minister of Finance has approved the new table of rates per kilometre for motor vehicles in respect of the 2025 year of assessment, for purposes of Section 8(1) of the Income Tax Act No. 58 of 1962.

The Commissioner for SARS has determined the daily amount for expenditure in respect of meals and incidental costs in the Republic of South Africa and the daily amount for travel outside the Republic in respect of the 2025 year of assessment, for purposes of Section 8(1) of the Income Tax Act No. 58 of 1962.

The external guide and annexures have been updated:

29 February 2024 – If you receive a travel allowance from an employer or principal, you can claim a deduction on assessment of your annual income tax return for the use of a private motor vehicle for business purposes. What do I need to do? Firstly, record your motor vehicle’s odometer reading on 1 March, i.e. on the first day of a tax year. Secondly, make sure that you keep a logbook throughout the year. Note that it is not necessary to record details of private travel but you must record details of business travel. You may make use of the SARS eLogbook, simply download the logbook. The latest logbook for next year was added on the Travel eLogbook webpage:

2024-25 SARS eLogbook for the 1 March 2024 – 28 February 2025 assessment year and filing season starting 1 Jul 2025
2023-24 SARS eLogbook for the 1 March 2023 – 29 February 2024 assessment year and filing season starting 1 Jul 2024

29 February 2024 – The Mobile Tax Unit schedule for Western Cape for March 2024 is now available.

29 February 2024 – In the year 2023, South Africa recorded a full year total trade balance surplus of R62.2bn (exports of R2.04trn and imports of R1.98trn constituting a total trade of R4.02trn).

Today, the South African Revenue Service (SARS) releases trade statistics for January 2024, recording a preliminary trade balance deficit of R9.4 billion. The deficit is attributable to exports of R144.3 billion and imports of R153.7 billion, inclusive of trade with Botswana, Eswatini, Lesotho and Namibia (BELN).

The year-to-date (01 January to 31 January 2024) preliminary trade balance deficit of R9.4 billion was an improvement from the R24.4 billion trade balance deficit for the comparable period in 2023. On a year-on-year basis, export flows for January 2024 were 4.5% higher compared to the R138.0 billion recorded in January 2023, whilst import flows were 5.4% lower having decreased from R162.4 billion in January 2023 to R153.7 billion in the current period.

On a month-on-month basis, exports decreased by R21.2 billion (-12.8%) from R165.5 billion to R144.3 billion between December 2023 and January 2024, whilst imports increased by R3.8 billion (2.5%) from R149.9 billion to R153.7 billion over the same period. Export flows decreased in January, driven by Passenger and Goods Vehicles as well as Coal. Value of imports increased on the back of higher import flows of Original Equipment Components, Telephone Sets, and Wheat and Meslin.

Due to ongoing Vouchers of Correction (VOCs), the preliminary trade balance surplus of R14.1 billion announced for December 2023 was revised upwards by R1.5 billion, with the final number at R15.6 billion.

See the full media release here.

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

Part 1 of Schedule No. 1, by the Deletion of tariff subheadings 1604.20.30 and 1604.20.35 as well as the insertion of tariff subheadings 1604.20.31; 1604.20.39 and 1604.20.45 in order to give effect to the Ministerial directive to reduce the general rate of customs duty on canned minced anchovies from 25% to a specific duty of 6c/kg – ITAC Report 719;
Part 2 of Schedule No. 4, by the insertion of rebate item 460.06/3823.13/01.06 in order to create a temporary rebate provision for tall oil fatty acids classifiable in tariff subheading 3823.13 – ITAC Report 689;
Part 2 of Schedule No. 4, by the substitution of rebate item 460.03/0207.14.1/01.07 in order to reduce the extent of rebate from “Full duty less 30%” to “Full duty less 12%”, for the importation of meat and edible offal of the species Gallus Domesticus – ITAC Report 726 (With retrospective effect from 26 January 2024); and
Part 2 of Schedule No. 4, by the substitution of rebate item 460.03/0207.14.9/01.07 in order to increase the extent of rebate from “Full duty less 25%” to “full duty less 37%”, for the importation of meat and edible offal of the species Gallus Domesticus – ITAC Report 726.

Publication details will be made available later

29 February 2024 – The Securities Transfer Tax (STT) guide is updated with an email address and the REV16 (Request for refund) form:

GEN-PAYM-11-G01 – Securities Transfer Tax – External Guide

1 March 2024 – The published Customs Scanner Operations policy has been updated to include the cargo scanner process at the O.R. Tambo International Airport:

SC-CC-35 – Customs Scanner Operations – External Policy

1 March 2024 – Customs and Excise Act, 1964: Publication details for tariff amendment notices R44369, R4440, R4441, and R4442, as published in Government Gazette 50203 on 1 March 2024, are now available.

1 March 2024 – Income Tax Act, 1962: Publication details for income tax notices 4456, 4457 and 4458, as published in Government Gazette 50243 of 1 March 2024, are now available. These notices relate to –

fixing of rate per kilometre in respect of motor vehicles in terms of section 8(1)(b)(ii) and (iii) (Notice 4456); and
determining of the daily amount in respect of meals and incidental costs for purposes of section 8(1)(c)(ii) (overnight allowance) (Notice 4458); and
determining of the daily amount in respect of meals and incidental costs for purposes of section 8(1)(c)(ii) (daily allowance) (Notice 4457).

4 March 2024 – The Commissioner for the South African Revenue Service (SARS), Mr Edward Kieswetter, welcomed the High Court decision, which dismissed an application for leave to appeal by British Petroleum of South Africa (BPSA) to review the Commissioner’s decision to refuse its refund claims and levy forfeiture under the Promotion of Administrative Justice Act (PAJA).

In the same matter, the High Court also referred to trial BPSA’s review of the Commissioner’s further decision, taken in terms of section 88(2)(a)(i) of the Customs and Excise Act, 1964 (Act 91 of 1964), to levy payment in lieu of forfeiture on the allegedly exported fuel.

BPSA argued that the High Court should have referred the appeal on the Commissioner’s Customs determination to trial as well. The High Court refused this request on the basis that there was no dispute of facts on matters of Customs determination but only on forfeiture.

The High Court’s decision of last week Thursday, is a sequel to its earlier judgement of 12 January 2024 where it dismissed BPSA’s appeal under section 47(9)(e) of the Customs and Excise Act against determinations made under the Act by the Commissioner.

Those determinations were that BPSA did not qualify for refunds of duty paid on fuel that BPSA says was exported to Zimbabwe. This is so because BPSA cannot prove that fuel was exported to Zimbabwe, nor can it identify the consignee who received the export delivery in Zimbabwe.

Commissioner Kieswetter expressed his satisfaction that the court has provided legal certainty and clarity on how SARS should deal with ghost exports. He said: “SARS has had to deal with this phenomenon of phantom exports with attendant costs to the fiscus, resulting in underserved refunds.” SARS is working very hard to assist taxpayers to meet their legal obligations and facilitate trade. However, it will make it hard and costly for taxpayers who are engaged in non-compliant behaviour. “This will be pursued without fear, favour or prejudice,” he concluded.

For further information, please contact SARSMedia@sars.gov.za

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

5 March 2024 – Customs Weekly List of Unentered Goods

6 March 2024 – Paragraph 2(1)(c) of the Second Schedule to the Act regulates the amount to be included as gross income for any year of assessment in respect of any amount transferred for the benefit of a member of a retirement fund on, or after normal retirement age, (as defined in the rules of the fund), but before the member elects to retire from that retirement fund, minus any deductions allowed under paragraph 6A of the Second Schedule to the Act.

Prior to 1 March 2022, paragraph 6A of the Second Schedule to the Act allowed the full value of the amounts transferred for the following transfers as deductions, resulting in these transfers taking place on a tax neutral basis:

Transfers from a pension fund into a pension preservation fund, provident preservation fund, or a retirement annuity fund; and
Transfers from a provident fund into a pension preservation fund, a provident preservation fund, or a retirement annuity fund.

From 1 March 2022, Paragraph 6A of the Second Schedule to the Act also allowed for transfers into a similar fund by a member of a pension preservation or provident preservation fund (who has reached normal retirement age in terms of the fund rules but has not yet opted to retire from the applicable preservation fund). As a result, these individual transfers would also take place on a tax neutral basis.

To ensure parity among members of retirement funds who are subject to an involuntary transfer — and who have reached normal retirement age in terms of the fund rules, but have not yet opted to retire from the fund — the following changes have been made in the Act:

Such individuals can have their retirement interest in that pension fund or provident fund transferred to another pension fund or provident fund without incurring a tax liability.
The value of the retirement interest, including any growth, will remain ring-fenced and preserved in the receiving pension or provident fund until the member retires from that fund. This means that these members will not be entitled to the payment of a withdrawal benefit in respect of the amount transferred.

If a member has reached retirement age, but has not opted to retire and is subject to an involuntary transfer, follow these application steps:

Go to Find a Form
Print Forms A and D from the SARS website.
Manually complete all required fields and select Transfer Before Retirement (Par 2[1][c]) as a reason for the directive.
Manually edit (scratch out) the transferee type so that the only options are either a Pension Fund or a Provident fund.

Email the completed Tax Directive application to contactus@sars.gov.za with the subject line, “Involuntary Transfer Before Retirement (Par 2[1][c]) Form A&D.

Processing time will be up to the standard 21 days.

6 March 2024 – Income Tax Act, 1962: Average Exchange Rates

Table A – A list of the average exchange rates of selected currencies for a year of assessment as from December 2003
Table B – A list of the monthly average exchange rates to assist a person whose year of assessment is shorter or longer than 12 months

6 March 2024 – Income Tax Act, 1962, and Tax Administration Act, 2011

SARSTC 14302 (IT) [2024] ZATC JHB (14 February 2024)

Transfer pricing – arm’s length price adjustment: Whether appellant may appeal against an increased assessment imposed on it by the respondent.

6 March 2024 – High Court Judgments

BP Southern Africa (Pty) Ltd v CSARS (2021/49805) [2024] ZAGPPHC 160 (1 March 2024)
CSARS v J Company (14944/19) [2024] ZAWCHC 63 (29 February 2024)
Finequest Enterprise (Pty) Limited v CSARS (008272/22) [2024] ZAGPPHC 170 (26 February 2024)
Dorking Africa (Pty) Ltd v CSARS (A141/2022) [2024] ZAGPPHC 30 (25 January 2024)

Summaries are available on the High Court judgments page

6 March 2024 – Tax Administration Act, 2011

Bechan and Another v SARS Customs Investigations Unit and Others (1196/2022) [2024] ZASCA 20 (05 March 2024)

Search and seizure – Tax Administration Act 28 of 2011 (the TAA) – interpretation – sections 59(1) and 60(1) – execution of a warrant against third parties on premises identified in the warrant – section 61(3)(a) of TAA – permits search of anything on the premises identified in the warrant including motor vehicle parked on the premises on suspicion that it contains material relevant to the taxpayer.

National Treasury

Media Statement: Greylisting South Africa's Progress Against its Action Plan – 29 February 2024

Statement of the National Revenue, Expenditure and Borrowing as at 31 January 2024 – 29 February 2024

· A Simpler, Stronger Financial Sector Ombud System - Policy Statement – 29 February 2024