SARS offshore disclosure programme nets over R1bn

Cape Town - The South African Revenue Service (SARS) announced on Tuesday that it has collected over R1bn in revenue from South Africans who made use of its special voluntary disclosure programme.

The programme, whose deadline was August 31, netted SARS over R1 016 467 286 in revenue, with a total tax liability of R1 182 734 842. 

SARS said it was satisfied with the results of the programme. "This collected revenue provides a boost to SARS’ revenue purse in a difficult economic period and will assist the country in its socio-economic development," it said in a statement.

The special voluntary disclosure programme was announced in the 2016 Budget Speech by then finance minister Pravin Gordhan. Its purpose was to give non-compliant taxpayers a chance to disclose offshore assets and income voluntarily, during a window period running from October 1 2016 to August 31 2017. 

Taxpayers who have missed the deadline and have not applied for offshore tax relief, can still do so under the normal Voluntary Disclosure Programme process.

• READ: Nowhere to hide from taxman as D-Day for offshore disclosure looms

The voluntary disclosure provision is aimed at SA taxpayers with tax defaults in respect of any tax types administered under the Tax Administration Act; disclosures may include defaults on foreign taxable income.

The special voluntary disclosure programme targeted South African taxpayers with undisclosed offshore assets and income.

It offered the chance of relief from criminal prosecution, an understatement penalty, a non-compliance penalty and a late payment penalty.

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