What’s New at SARS

Third Party Appointments (AA88) – Process and CSV File Specification

5 May 2023 – Updated document: Process and CSV File Specification for Third Party Appointments (AA88) version 1.4

Tenders

5 May 2023 – The latest Tender Bids Received document is now available.

Legal Counsel – Secondary Legislation – Tariff Amendments 2023

5 May 2023 – Customs & Excise Act, 1964: Publication details for tariff amendment notice R.3372, as published in Government Gazette 48518 of 5 May 2023, are now available.

eFiling upgrade on 6 May 2023

5 May 2023 – 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 & technology infrastructure. In order to provide clarity & certainty, make it easy for taxpayers & traders to comply with their obligations and building public trust and confidence, our technology assets have to demonstrate the highest levels of availability, robustness and security. Pursuant to 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 & technology infrastructure are available, robust & secure, by performing regular upgrades, enhancements and maintenance.

In the light of the above, system upgrades are scheduled for Saturday, 6 May 2023 from:

  • 05:00 until 10:00 (am). During this time eFiling will be intermittently available.
  • 20:00 until 23:00 (pm). During this time, various eFiling services may not be available.

Media release – SARS conducts raid at an unregistered warehouse

5 May 2023 –Members of the South African Revenue Service (SARS) and the South African Police Service (SAPS) conducted a raid on an unauthorised warehouse in Vryburg, North-West yesterday, 4 May 2023, confiscating millions of rands worth of illegally manufactured alcohol and bitcoin mining equipment. The warehouse was used to illegally connect the crypto currency mining equipment to the town’s electrical power supply. It was also used to manufacture 14 617 bottles of duty-free liquor and popular local brands. See the full media statement here.

Tax Workshops

4 May 2023 – Tax workshop schedules for Gauteng North during May have been published.

Legal Counsel – Secondary Legislation – Tariff Amendments 2023

4 May 2023 – Customs & Excise Act, 1964: The tariff amendment notice, scheduled for publication in the Government Gazette, relates to the amendments to –

  • Part 2 of Schedule No. 4, by the insertion of rebate item 460.16/8415.10.10/01.08, in order to provide for a rebate of the duty payable in Schedule No. 1 Part 1 for air-conditioning machines having a rated cooling capacity not exceeding 8,8 kilowatts, classifiable in tariff subheading 8415.10.10 – ITAC Report 681. Publication details will be made available later.

Legal Counsel Publications – Tables of Interest Rates

4 May 2023 – Income Tax Act, 1962: Tables of Interest Rates

  • Table 1 – Interest rates on outstanding taxes and interest rates payable on certain refunds of tax
  • Table 2 – Interest rates payable on credit amounts

Beware of SARS scam via Telegram

4 May 2023 – Please be aware of scammers pretending to be from SARS engaging people through a Telegram group to pay tax through a merchant, with the promise of a subsequent refund and commission/salary. It seems a TikTok video is advertising opportunities to make money, and if people link themselves, they are added to a Telegram group. Please stay safe and vigilant, don’t click on any suspicious links or subscribe to ‘get-rich-quick’ schemes. See the detail of this Telegram scam here or keep an eye on the Latest Scams webpage.

SARS Third Party Data platforms – planned maintenance

3 May 2023 – Please note that the SARS Third Party Data production platforms for both Secure File Gateway and Connect:Direct will be temporarily offline for planned maintenance between 03:00am and 06:00am on Saturday 6 May 2023. Please do not submit any files in the Production environment during this time, as they will not be processed.

Media release – How SARS has changed tax compliance status reporting for transferring funds abroad

3 May 2023 – The South African Revenue Service (SARS) wishes to provide an update with respect to the matter of Tax Compliance Status. As the previous Tax Compliance Status (TCS) solution had been operational since April 2016 and processed substantial and growing volumes of taxpayers requesting 3rd party verification requests, including Foreign Investment Allowance and Emigration, there was need for an enhancement to the system to rationalise and speed it up. In addition, following the announcement of the abolition of emigration as an exchange control concept in 2020, the South African Reserve Bank (SARB) has removed the requirement to apply to emigrate financially (the MP336 application). This has necessitated changes to SARS’ processes and forms. The enhanced TCS system was introduced on 24 April 2023 following consultations with authorised dealers and the SARB. It supports the strategic objectives of SARS to make it easier for taxpayers to comply. See the full media statement here.

Customs Weekly List of Unentered Goods

2 May 2023 – Customs Weekly List of Unentered Goods

Media statement on the impounded truck with illicit cigarettes

2 May 2023 – The law enforcement team comprising of South African Revenue Service, South African Police Service and the Tshwane Metro Police acting on a tip-off intercepted a truck carrying illicit cigarettes at Bronkhorstspruit on the early hours of Monday, 1 May 2023. The illicit cigarettes were imported through Beit Bridge where they were falsely declared as tea leaves. The truck was stopped at Bronkhorstspruit. On being approached, the driver fled the scene and the truck and its consignment was detained. See the full media statement here.