SARS gives South Africans with old tax debts a break

• South Africans with old tax debts will be given a break by SARS if proposed changes to the Voluntary Disclosure Programme are enacted, allowing them to request remission of interest at the same time as settling their tax debt.
• The proposed changes follow an important judgment by the Constitutional Court in the Medtronic case, which confirmed that SARS had no legal power to remit interest under the existing legislation.
• If enacted, the proposed amendment could make voluntary disclosure more attractive to taxpayers with large historical tax liabilities, potentially reducing the financial barrier to coming forward and regularising their affairs.