Are you prepared for a disaster? Know your rights as a taxpayer

Do you know what to do and what your rights are as a taxpayer when disaster strikes? 

We are all now facing one such disaster: Covid-19. But there are many other situations that would be disastrous for a taxpayer and for the SA Revenue Service (Sars). These include natural disasters such as floods, fires, hurricanes as well as technological disasters (loss of electronic records, crime, identity theft and more).

Tax compliance is not optional, so what do you do and what are your rights when you just can’t comply, or when disaster strikes Sars and this affects your compliance? Being non-compliant can result in further financial hardship for taxpayers in the form of penalties and interest. It can also result in being denied access to further tax relief measures. The South African Institute of Chartered Accountants (Saica) knows how difficult this can be, which is why Saica is hosting a webinar on this topic: “Taxpayer Rights in a Time of Disaster”. 

Legal rights and obligations

It’s useful to remind taxpayers of their constitutional rights and Sars’s constitutional obligations when it performs its functions in administering various taxation statutes. In the webinar, advocate Julia Boltar will delve into various principled questions such as whether, in a time of disaster, there is a clash between the current tax provisions and the principle of fairness (as well as other rule of law principles). Patricia Williams, partner at Bowmans, will discuss taxpayers’ rights and responsibilities to action and redress against the state and this will be contrasted to the taxpayers’ responsibilities when Sars experiences a disaster such as IT failures, hijacked refunds and relief measures.

Practical application of the law

To contextualise these legal considerations, “tax in practice” sessions will provide practical tips on dealing with real-life, fact-based scenarios and measures taxpayers can take in these circumstances.

The coronavirus pandemic will be used to highlight the havoc these disasters can have on the economy and the fiscus. Covid-19 has not only put Sars under pressure to collect tax revenues, but taxpayers have had to weigh up their tax compliance obligations versus the continued employment of their staff as well as the continuity of their businesses.

Michael Honiball, partner at Werksmans, will explore the right of taxpayers to fully disclose their facts and circumstances in confidence to their advisers (legal professional privilege).

Lessons learnt

Sars will share what did and did not work during the Covid-19 pandemic and what it could have done better. Gert van Heerden, senior legal specialist at the office of the tax ombud (OTO), will talk through some of the concerns raised by taxpayers, and suggestions for preventive measures that could have been used, including discussions on things such as Sars branches that were closed down due to Covid-19 cases and efiling challenges.

International experiences

Reflecting on how other jurisdictions across the globe have handled disasters, specifically the Covid-19 pandemic, will help ascertain how SA faired and how it will use these experiences to plan for the future. Dr Brian Keegan, director: public policy & tax, Chartered Accountants Ireland, will join Liesl Fichardt (Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan, LLP, UK), Peter Green (OECD: head of the Forum on Tax Administration Secretariat), Logan Wort (African Tax Administration Forum) and Lazelle Terblanche (Africa Industry Tax Association chair) to share their insights on the targeted tax relief measures provided by international organisations during the Covid-19 pandemic.

Taxpayer bill of rights and service charters

The webinar will also cover whether the taxpayers’ bill of rights and service charters protect the rights of taxpayers and whether there are any available alternatives. Nina Olson, executive director of the Centre for Taxpayer Rights in the US and former US taxpayer advocate, will share her experiences on taxpayer bill of rights as a vehicle for taxpayer awareness and empowerment. “Using rights-based, rather than customer-service language indicates to taxpayers that the agency takes seriously its obligations to uphold the rule of law and respect for human dignity,” says Olson. 

When and where?

Join the Saica Taxpayer Rights webcast on September 29 2020. 

Do taxpayers in SA believe they have rights against Sars and do they know what these rights are? The verdict on this is still out.

This article was paid for by Saica.