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SARS MAKES A CHANGE TO THE UPCOMING TAX SEASON
What you need to know
The tax filing dates for nonprovisional taxpayers for the 2023 tax season have been confirmed as 01 July 2022 to 24 October 2022 by the South African Revenue Service (SARS). Tax payers will have this period in which to file their tax returns.
This season is condensed in comparison with last year, which was over an extended period due to the Covid-19 Pandemic and the need for certain protocols to prohibit the spread of the virus.
It is important that tax payers understand the tax filing process as the burden of proof under section 102(1) of the Tax Administration Act resides with the taxpayer.
What you will need to file your taxes: � IRP5 or if you don’t have this a record of the year’s payslips � Third party data – like investments, medical aid and retirement tax certificates IT3(b), IT3(c), IT3(e) � Your travel logbook completed for the dates 01 March 2021 – 28 February 2022 � Overseas work-related travel will require copies of your passport � Proof of medical expenses not covered by your medical aid e.g., receipts � Proof of charitable donations Section 18A certificate � All supporting documents with regard to business, rentals and all income/expenses for investments � If you are claiming a home office, SARS may require photographic proof of this space
Auto-assessments
SARS is concerned as based on the 2021 tax season many people are not filing their tax returns. These people will be auto-assessed by SARS based on data that SARS receives from employers, financial institutions, medical schemes and retirement fund administrators.
Taxpayers that are auto-assessed will get a notification from SARS informing them that there is a pre-populated income tax return on eFiling or on the SARS MobiApp. The tax payer can then either accept or edit this return. Any over- or underpayment will be processed as normal.
Taxpayers are urged to review the autoassessment for accuracy and to confirm that certificates are loaded and that they correspond with the originals in your possession. If any are missing, they need to be uploaded and all data assessed before accepting and submitting the autoassessment.
Penalties
As mentioned previously, the burden of proof resides with the taxpayer as the assessment is essentially based upon information supplied by the taxpayer.
If you disagree with or wish to dispute an assessment, you can file an accurate ITR12 tax return within 40 days of the estimated assessment.
If you edit a preloaded tax return and SARS is not satisfied, they may select your return for review and verification. Thus, be very sure that you have all the backing documentation and certificates prior to making alterations.
In the event that you owe SARS, payment can be made on eFiling or on the SARS MobiApp, via EFT.
Filing an inaccurate return, filing the return late or failing to pay funds owed to SARS can result in an administrative penalty. The value of the penalty is based on the taxpayer’s taxable income and will be levied monthly until the matter is resolved. The penalty will range between R250 and R16 000 per month. �
