Shows / Tax Break: South African tax for professionals
Tax Break: South African tax for professionals
Tax Break is a podcast for any professional who works with South African tax regularly. This includes tax practitioners, tax professionals, financial managers (FMs), financial directors (FDs), CFOs, accountants, auditors, lawyers and corporate finance advisors. The host is Professor Pieter van der Zwan, a South African chartered accountant, who lectures the masters programme in tax at a South African university. He has 20 years experience in advising companies, high net worth individuals…
Episodes
Tax Break: South African tax for professionalsDomestic transfer pricing: section 31 and SEZ companies
Does transfer pricing in South Africa still only apply to international transactions? The Taxation Laws Amendment Bill published on 21 October extends section…
Tax Break: South African tax for professionalsDeducting another group company's expenses: section 11(a)
Can one group company deduct the operating costs of another under section 11(a) of the Income Tax Act? This episode examines a tax court judgment on a South…
Tax Break: South African tax for professionalsRemittance of percentage-based penalties: section 213 TAA
Can a 10% late payment penalty be remitted, and on what grounds? This episode of Tax Break works through the percentage-based penalties imposed under section…
Tax Break: South African tax for professionalsDividend stripping and the GAAR: CGT and USPs
Does the July 2026 tax court judgment on dividend stripping and the general anti-avoidance rule (GAAR) mean these transactions can no longer be done? This…
Tax Break: South African tax for professionalsInterest deduction limitations: section 23M of the Income Tax Act
When does section 23M of the Income Tax Act limit the interest a company can deduct on debt owed to a creditor in a controlling relationship, and why is it not…
Tax Break: South African tax for professionalsFixing bona fide errors on tax returns: USP risks
Understatement penalties (USP) and bona fide inadvertent errors after the amendment to section 222 of the Tax Administration Act (TAA): if you correct an error…
Tax Break: South African tax for professionalsReportable arrangements: section 35 of the Tax Administration Act
Reportable arrangements (RAs) under section 35 of the Tax Administration Act are often overlooked by advisors, and frequently only surface when an accountant…
Tax Break: South African tax for professionalsAre self-insurance premiums tax deductible? The Meiring Citrus judgment
Are self-insurance premiums deductible? In this episode of Tax Break, I discuss the deductibility aspect of the Western Cape High Court judgment in CSARS v…
Tax Break: South African tax for professionalsSection 99 prescription: When can SARS reopen a tax assessment after three years? CSARS v Meiring Citrus
When does prescription protect taxpayers from SARS issuing additional assessments? Section 99 of the Tax Administration Act generally bars SARS from issuing an…
Tax Break: South African tax for professionals2026 draft TALAB: PAYE for foreign employers with SA permanent establishments, provisional tax penalties and VDP changes
The National Treasury published the 2026 draft Tax Administration Laws Amendment Bill (draft TALAB) for public comment on 30 July 2026. In this episode, I…
Tax Break: South African tax for professionals2026 Draft Tax Bills: CFCs, dividend stripping, interest deductions, VAT on leasehold improvements
South Africa’s National Treasury published the 2026 draft tax law amendments for public comment on 30 July 2026. Although proposals are technical, tax…
Tax Break: South African tax for professionalsCSARS v Meiring Citrus: substance over form, simulation and the deductibility of insurance premiums
Does the label on a contract determine its South African tax consequences? If you call an agreement a loan, are the payments deductible interest? If you call…
Tax Break: South African tax for professionalsAre your zero-rated supplies really zero-rated?
Zero-ratings are complex and often underestimated by taxpayers and their advisors. The exposure may be significant if you get it wrong, especially on recurring…
Tax Break: South African tax for professionalsTaxation of crypto assets
SARS issued a draft guide on the taxation of crypto assets. In this episode, I discuss a few aspects of this draft guide that I believe offer valuable insights…
Tax Break: South African tax for professionalsSection 42: What is it not? (Part 2)
Section 42 of the Income Tax Act provides relief for asset-for-share transactions. In this episode, I discuss some anti-avoidance rules to consider when…
Tax Break: South African tax for professionalsSection 42: What is it? (Part 1)
Section 42 of the Income Tax Act provides relief for asset-for-share transactions. In this episode, I discuss how the provision works, some of its history and…
Tax Break: South African tax for professionalsRelated party loans: To charge interest or not?
When does the tax law require a person to charge interest? The answer is never. It only sets out what the tax implications are if parties do not charge…
Tax Break: South African tax for professionalsTiming matters in tax
Taxpayers often suggest that as long as SARS taxes an amount, or a deduction is only claimed once, then that should be acceptable. This is however not correct…
Tax Break: South African tax for professionalsKey aspects of partnership tax
SARS recently launched the IT3(BO) third party declaration process that relates to the income tax of partnerships. I take this opportunity to discuss some of…
Tax Break: South African tax for professionalsThe ABSA case: more on the GAAR
The Constitutional Court recently ruled on two legal questions relating to the GAAR raised in a review application by ABSA. In this episode, I discuss the case…
Tax Break: South African tax for professionalsIs your home owners association’s income tax treatment correct?
SARS issued an updated version of Interpretation Note 64 in December 2025. This interpretation note deals with, amongst others, the taxation of home owners…
Tax Break: South African tax for professionalsChanges to the VAT registration thresholds – what should vendors in the R1m to R2,3m bracket do now?
The National Treasury announced changes to the VAT registration thresholds in the 2026 Budget Review. Some vendors may be considering deregistration as a…
Tax Break: South African tax for professionalsRecent trends: be careful of the GAAR
There has recently been an increase in the number of cases before the courts involving the general anti-avoidance rules (the GAAR). In this episode, I discuss…
Tax Break: South African tax for professionalsTax in the 2026 South African Budget
There is always a lot of excitement about budget and 2026 was no different. In this episode, I discuss some tax proposals in the budget that could be…
Tax Break: South African tax for professionalsSection 7C: how does SARS interpret it?
Section 7C has been a hot topic for tax practitioners since its introduction in the Income Tax Act as part of the 2016 amendments. It is one of the few…
Tax Break: South African tax for professionalsInterest deductibility
SARS recently issued an interesting ruling on a something that comes up very often in practice - interest deductibility. In short, the ruling deals with the…
Tax Break: South African tax for professionalsThe small business CGT exclusion
Consider the following scenario: you, or perhaps your client, owns a small business. The time has arrived, as with many small businesses, to sell - whether the…
Tax Break: South African tax for professionalsConsidering VAT on grants
When thinking about VAT and grants, your first instinct is probably that there should not be VAT on a grant. In this episode, I look at a tax court case that…
Tax Break: South African tax for professionalsPointers for share incentive schemes
Many companies, both large and small, use share incentives for key staff members to align their objectives with those of the company. The design may look…
Tax Break: South African tax for professionalsDividend or donation?
If a company makes payments to a related party of its shareholder, the question arises whether this is a dividend, or perhaps rather a donation? SARS recently…
Tax Break: South African tax for professionalsChanges to USPs in 2026
The National Treasury published the 2025 tax laws amendment bills on 12 November 2025. In this episode, I discuss the amendments to the USP regime. You can…
Tax Break: South African tax for professionalsChanges to VAT for schools in 2026
The National Treasury published the 2025 tax laws amendment bills on 12 November 2025. In this episode, I discuss the amendments relating VAT on supplies by…
Tax Break: South African tax for professionalsThe 2025 tax amendment bills
The National Treasury published the 2025 tax laws amendment bills on 12 November 2025. In this episode, I highlight some of the key amendments in these bills…
Tax Break: South African tax for professionalsGet a tax ruling?
Taxpayers can obtain certainty on uncertain tax positions by requesting an advance tax ruling from SARS. In this episode, I discuss some of the requirements…
Tax Break: South African tax for professionalsValuing trading stock for tax purposes
Taxpayers may value closing stock at less than its cost in certain circumstances. SARS recently issued Interpretation Note 140 on this topic. In this episode…
Tax Break: South African tax for professionalsReadily apparent undisputed errors
Taxpayers may request SARS to reduce assessments in the case of readily apparent undisputed errors. SARS recently issued a draft interpretation note on this…
Tax Break: South African tax for professionalsWhen will SARS respond?
Taxpayers who submit information to SARS during a dispute are often anxious to receive a response. In this episode, I discuss som timeframes that the law…
Tax Break: South African tax for professionalsConnections via trusts
Many anti-avoidance rules rely on a connected person relationship as a trigger to apply. In this episode, I discuss the definition of a connected person to a…
Tax Break: South African tax for professionalsVAT and agency relationships
The VAT Act contains specific provisions dealing with agents. In this episode, I discuss some of the key provisions that apply to agency relationships. You can…
Tax Break: South African tax for professionalsTax and influencers
SARS recently established a specialised segment focusing on influencers. In this episode, I share a few thoughts on some of the tax considerations that this…
Tax Break: South African tax for professionalsReasons for assessments
If a taxpayer is aggrieved by certain decisions or an assessment, they may object against it. In this episode, I discuss a recent tax court case where the…
Tax Break: South African tax for professionalsSection 8E proposal retracted and proposed changes to CIS taxation
The National Treasury published the draft tax law amendment bills for comment on 16 August 2025. The draft bills include proposed affecting section 8E and also…
Tax Break: South African tax for professionalsProposed changes – Understatement penalties (USPs)
The National Treasury published the draft tax law amendment bills for comment on 16 August 2025. The draft bills include a proposal affecting understatement…
Tax Break: South African tax for professionalsProposed changes – Individuals with suspect trades
The National Treasury published the draft tax law amendment bills for comment on 16 August 2025. The draft bills include a proposal relating to section 20A…
Tax Break: South African tax for professionalsProposed changes – Preference shares
The National Treasury published the draft tax law amendment bills for comment on 16 August 2025. A significant proposal relates to section 8E, which deals with…
Tax Break: South African tax for professionalsWho are provisional taxpayers?
Provisional tax is one of the mechanisms used to collect income tax. Whether an individual is a provisional taxpayer or not, amongst others, affect when they…
Tax Break: South African tax for professionalsSouth African tax on residents / non-residents
I often get the question whether a person who ceased being a resident still needs to pay tax and submit returns in South Africa. This question goes back to the…
Tax Break: South African tax for professionalsNotional input tax
Notional input tax is not a new topic in the VAT Act. There are, however, still some misconceptions about it. In this episode, I discuss some of the principles…
Tax Break: South African tax for professionalsVAT apportionment
VAT apportionment is often a complex matter for entities that make both taxable and non-taxable supplies. In this episode,I briefly discuss some key concepts…
Tax Break: South African tax for professionalsTax considerations when selling foreign assets
Given the volatile economic conditions globally, many South Africans are selling or re-balancing their exposure to foreign assets. A question that naturally…
Tax Break: South African tax for professionalsThe importance of financial statements for tax purposes
SARS requires companies to submit their financial statements when they file their tax returns. The financial statements are critical when the tax return is…
Tax Break: South African tax for professionalsDebit loans and deemed dividends – practical considerations
If a company advances a loan to a shareholder and does not charge interest at the official rate a deemed dividend arises. In this episode, I discuss some of…
Tax Break: South African tax for professionalsAutomatic VAT registrations
Several taxpayers received correspondence in recent months from SARS indicating that they have been registered as VAT vendors, despite not applying to be…
Tax Break: South African tax for professionalsTax season 2025
The Commissioner of the South African Revenue Service annually publishes a notice relating to the returns to be submitted. In this episode, I consider this…
Tax Break: South African tax for professionalsTax implications of share-based staff incentives
There are many differences between the tax and accounting treatment of transactions and arrangements. Share-based payments often result in such differences to…
Tax Break: South African tax for professionalsTax deductibility of raising fees
Taxpayers often incur significant amounts of raising fees in respect of debt funding. The deductibility of these fees was recently considered in a tax court…
Tax Break: South African tax for professionalsConnected persons vs group of companies
The concepts of connected person and group of companies that are found in the tax legislation may seem similar at first, but they serve very different…
Tax Break: South African tax for professionalsInput tax on business expenses
VAT vendors are entitled to deduct input tax on goods or services acquired for purposes of making taxable supplies. However, there are some exceptions where…
Tax Break: South African tax for professionalsTrusts with non-resident beneficiaries
Several recent amendments and developments affect trusts with non-resident beneficiaries. In this episode, I discuss the tax considerations that trustees of…
Tax Break: South African tax for professionalsWhat is value shifting?
Many transactions, especially reorganisations, involve transfers of assets from one person to another. One question that often comes up in arrangements between…