Forming a Trust in South Africa: Which Type Suits You?
What is a trust? The answer may seem obvious, but in practice, many people get confused as to exactly what a trust is and what such a structure is meant for. In this article, we examine the various types of trust recognised under the South African common law, as well as where the Income Tax […]
Don’t suffer the tax consequences of waived debt
Many natural persons or trust shareholders in companies are confronted with the unintended tax consequences of owing an amount on a loan account to the company in which they hold those shares. These tax consequences specifically relate to the “deemed dividend” which arises on interest-free loans (related to so-called “debit loans” in companies). In many […]
Never do things just ‘for tax purposes’
A decision based solely on tax considerations is likely to be the wrong one. “I hate tax!” These were the words spoken by a director of one of the clients of the audit firm with whom I served articles. Whilst many would agree with this sentiment towards the tax-man, this particular individual’s zeal in devising […]
Ring-fencing trading losses
Top-rate taxpayers need to watch out for Section 20A Section 20 of the Income Tax Act 58 of 1962 deals with the set-off of losses from a trade against other income. In general, such set-off is allowed (see sub-paragraph (1)(b)), provided that the loss is incurred in the taxpayer’s own name (i.e. not in a […]
Don’t lose that assessed loss!
Assessed losses can be carried forward—provided that the company doesn’t cease trading If the amount of allowable deductions exceeds the taxable income in your business, you will end up with what is known as an ‘assessed loss’ for tax purposes. In terms of Section 20 of the Income Tax Act, you are entitled to carry […]
Bribes, penalties, and fines: Don’t expect help from SARS
Deductions are disallowed under Section 23(o)—but it’s not quite cut and dried… The meeting went on longer than you expected, and now you’re rushing to get to your next appointment. It’s a new client, and a successful deal will be lucrative both for your company and this month’s commission cheque. But not five minutes after […]
Section 24C allowance: Future expenditure
The nature of a taxpayer’s business may be such that the taxpayer receives amounts under a contract that will be used to finance expenditure to be incurred in future in performing under that contract. Generally, this would result in an inclusion of the amount in that taxpayer’s income in that year of assessment. In contrast, […]
Deducting bond interest when using an access bond facility
You can use a loan re-advance against your house to purchase a rental property, and get the interest allowed as a tax deduction – it just needs to be structured properly One of the questions most frequently asked is whether interest on a bond raised to purchase a rental property is deductible against the rent […]
Barter transactions: What is the tax cost of my asset?
Barter transactions are commonplace in today’s commercial environment. Parties exchange goods or services without a cash transaction underpinning it. The question is, “What happens when I sell the asset in future? Do I have a tax cost for it?” Paragraph 20(1)(a) of the Eighth Schedule to the Income Tax Act refers to ‘the expenditure actually incurred in respect of the cost […]
Transfer of assets between spouses: What are the tax implications?
Section 9HB of the Income Tax Act provides for a roll-over of a capital gain or loss when an asset is transferred between spouses during their lifetimes. The roll-over is mandatory, and spouses do not have the option to elect out of it. The policy rationale for the roll-over is that the transferor spouse must benefit […]