SARS to clamp down on tax evaders

AS of October the SA Revenue Services (SARS) will intensify criminal proceedings against tax offenders.

SARS reminds all taxpayers that in accordance with the Tax Administration Act No. 28 of 2011 (TAA) and specifically Section 234 (d), it is a criminal offence not to submit a tax return for any of the tax types they are registered for. The tax types are personal income tax (PIT), corporate income tax (CIT), pay as you earn (PAYE) and value added tax (VAT).

“Although SARS’ philosophy is that of education, service, thereafter enforcement, we have noticed an increase in taxpayers not submitting their tax returns by the stipulated deadlines and not settling their outstanding debt with SARS. This is not limited to the current tax year but includes substantial non-compliance across previous tax years.”

Failure to submit the return(s) within the said period could result in administrative penalties being imposed on a monthly basis per outstanding return and criminal prosecution resulting in imprisonment or a fine for each day that such default continues.

It is also important to note that should any return result in a tax debt, it must be paid before the relevant due date to avoid any interest for late payment and legal action.

To avoid any penalties, interest, prosecutions as well as imprisonment, taxpayers are urged to rectify their compliance by submitting any outstanding returns as soon as possible at their nearest SARS branch or via SARS eFiling at www.sarsefiling.co.za.

For further clarity, taxpayers can direct any queries to 0800 00 7277.