THE SOUTH AFRICAN REVENUE SERVICE

Filing season - 2008

The South African Revenue Service (SARS) announced details for the 2008 Tax Season and for the first time specific emphasis are placed on the central role of employers in the Personal Income Tax (PIT) system.

For 2008, changes will be introduced that will focus on the legal obligation of employers who administer payroll taxes – PAYE, SITE, UIF and SDL. These changes will affect the way in which employers submit their annual PAYE declarations to SARS. It will also affect the way companies issue IRP5 certificates to employees for a particular tax year and the traditional way in which individuals receive, complete and submit their annual tax returns to SARS.

SARS implemented the first phase of the PIT reform programme in 2007 with changes to the income tax return process:

	the tax return was redesigned
	taxpayers did not have to submit supporting documents to the return
	SARS applied electronic 3rd party data verification of information the taxpayer provided;
	returns were scanned and assessed through an automated process for faster turnaround times

What do the changes in 2008 mean ?

For Employers:

	Employers have time until 30 June 2008 to prepare their employees tax data
	Employers then have a 60 day window period – 1 July 2008 to 29 August 2008 - to submit details of employer PAYE deductions and IRP 5 information to SARS
	Employees cannot receive or submit their tax returns to SARS until employers complete their PAYE declarations to SARS
	SARS will provide computer software, free of charge, that can reconcile the deductions they made from employees’ and what employers paid to SARS
	The payroll information from employers to SARS will allow SARS to issue the majority of taxpayers with a pre-populated return that already contains the income they have earned from employers
	Employers who do not comply by 29 August 2008 will face strong penalties

For Individuals:

	The filing period for returns opens on 1 September 2008
	Individuals must request a return from SARS and can do so from 1 September 2008
	The deadline for the manual submission of returns is 21 November 2008
	The deadline for electronic submission of returns is 23 January 2009
	Certain individuals with income below R120 000 per year year; who have a single employer and source of income, and who meet certain criteria, will not have to complete and submit a tax return to SARS

SARS will not issue or mail any returns to taxpayers this year.
Taxpayers will have to request a return from SARS from 1 September 2008 (for clients of Strachan & Crouse, the returns will be requested by us via SARS e – filing)